


Jacques and Blue

by Link1988



Series: Continuously Simon [1]
Category: Love Simon (2018), Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda - Becky Albertalli
Genre: Canon Continuation, M/M, Mild Sexual Content, More movie than book
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-21
Updated: 2018-05-16
Packaged: 2019-04-05 09:03:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,633
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14040798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Link1988/pseuds/Link1988
Summary: Simon and Bram are finishing up their senior year and planning for college together in the fall. But not everything goes as planned.





	1. Sleeping Arrangements

Chapter 1  
Sleeping Arrangements 

I push Bram through my bedroom door. “Okay, Mom. Have fun,” I shout down to my mother.

“Not too late boys. You still have school tomorrow.” She closes the front door behind her. Bram is at the window waving to Jack and Nora down by the car. They decided to go to the Bruster’s for some milkshakes. Bram and I decided to stay home for some time alone. I join Bram at the window to watch the car back out of the driveway and roll down the street. 

As soon as the car is out of view, I pounce on my tall, dark, and handsome boyfriend pressing my lips firmly against Bram’s lips. We fall back onto the carpet and I straddle Bram; whose hands took control of my hips. We both know we won’t have enough time to do everything we want, but we will try. Bram and I break apart only for a moment to quickly undress.

Just as we have removed most of our clothes and gotten back into it, my phone rings out on my desk. ‘Dad’ appeared on the screen. It’s a picture of Dad and me on a fishing trip from years ago. It was my first catch, sort of. The picture shows me at about 4 years old holding up a piece of driftwood proudly to the camera while my father smiles behind me. I love this picture. It was only fitting it would be my dad’s caller id photo. Bram let out a sigh as I jump up to answer the call. “Hey Dad. What’s up?”

“Are you okay, hon? You sound out of breath?” my mom’s voice calls out. Damn you Bluetooth. Dad and Nora snickered in the background. 

“Yeah, I’m fine. I left my phone downstairs and had to run to get it.” Bram covers his mouth to hold in a laugh but keeps shaking with me still on top of him. I give his abs a light smack but that only make it worse. 

“Hey bud, Bruster’s was packed so we are just coming home.” Dad was warning them. He was always looking out for Bram and I. Dad took to my boyfriend almost as quickly as I did. He’s a surrogate father for him since his father lived over 3 hours away in Savannah. My parents even attend soccer games. His mother and him eat over a lot since her work schedule keeps her so busy. Nora loves having the new test subject for her cooking creations. My parents and I just love having the new additions to our family. 

“Bummer. We’ll see you in a bit, then,” I say trying to sound sympathetic and not disappointed. 

“See you in a few, hon.” 

“Bye Bram,” Nora adds from the back seat.

Before we can end the call, Bram adds, “See ya, Nora.” My eyes shoot open in a panic.

“Alright boys. Call it a night.” It’s almost as if his mother planned this. 

“Yes, Mom.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Spier.” I hang up the phone and flop down on Bram’s chest. “Well, only a few more months and we’ll have our own place.”

“You don’t think she’ll call every minute of every day?” I tilt my head to meet Bram’s beautiful brown eyes. 

“A life of celibacy it is then.” He smiles down at me. “I should get going. What are you doing tomorrow?” 

I lift myself up and began putting on my shirt. “Leah and I have to study for our world history project tomorrow after school, but I’m open after that.”

“Maybe I could come over and talk about what we are going to bring for our dorm.” Bram stands pulling up his pants around his narrow hips. I could admire those all days. His inguinal crease makes me hot. Well, all of Bram makes me hot. But something about that part of the body makes me especially horny. I stand up to meet Bram. 

“I would like that a lot.” I feel the strong knobbly hands wrap around me and lock fingers behind my back. Bram gives me a peck. “I wish you didn’t have to go,” I say resting my head on the bare shoulder of the man I love. My Blue.

“Soon, I won’t need to.” 

“Are we going to put our beds together?” I lift my head to look at Bram.

“I haven’t thought about it,” Bram said. “I’ve just always imagined a single bed.” 

“We’ll have to figure out sleeping arrangements tomorrow as well.” I think about the ‘as well’ for a second. We are rubbing off on each other. My grammar has improved drastically since dating Bram. Bram, however, still has immaculate sentence structure and grammar. Fitting he will be majoring in communications at Stanford. His dream is to be a journalist. It also helps that he got academic and athletic scholarships to attend. I was able to get in for their computer science program. California was a whole continent away, but we will have each other. That thought fills me with such hope. We even managed to become roommates. Our parents weren’t entirely sold on the idea at first but knew we would be spending our time with each other’s dorms anyway. Ms. Greenfeld just handed us a box of condoms and told us to be safe. We may have already used most of the condoms. 

And just on cue, a text from Dad comes in saying they were going to try another Bruster’s. One over 30 minutes to get there and 30 minutes to get back. ‘Daddy needs his Oreo milkshake’ I quickly reply with a thank you and ‘please never refer to yourself as Daddy again please.’ He sends a winking face emoji back. 

“Well Mr. Greenfeld, it sounds like we have been given an extra hour. What should we do with said hour?” I unbutton Bram’s pants and dropped them to the floor. 

“I would say, Mr. Spier, that we could discuss those sleeping arrangements in further detail.” His light brown fingers grasp my shirt and lift it off. Our lips meet again. It feels like it had been forever to me. I let Bram’s tongue make its way into my mouth. We find our way to my bed and fall together. Bram rolls me onto my back. He kisses his way down my body. My briefs quickly become tighter. Luckily, Bram removes them for me Then he takes me into his mouth, making me let out a gasp of joy. The soccer star work on me for a while before making his way up to my mouth. “Are you ready?”

“Yes.” I lay a kiss on my man. 

“How badly to you want it?” Bram bites my shoulder. 

“Don’t tease me,” I say, flipping myself over onto my stomach. Bram reaches over to the night stand and grabs a condom from our stash and lube. “I’m ready.”

“Not like this.” 

“What do you mean?” I turn to look at him.

“I want to see you. I want to look into your eyes.” Bram’s fingers caress my cheek. He kisses me and I return it deeply. Bram prepares himself as I lay on my back. I raise my legs and let him enter me. I let out a low moan. Bram stares into my eyes and I wrap my hands around my mate’s neck. The two of us make love once again.

After we finish, we make our way out the window to lay on the small roof above the front door. My head is resting on Bram’s chest and staring up at the stars. An hour had turned into almost two hours for the rest of my family. “I should get you home. You’re turning into a pumpkin.” Bram eyes are extremely droopy. “Let’s go.” 

“Nooooo! I want to stay.” Bram cuddles closer to me. “I like these sleeping arrangements.” 

“Same, but we should get you home. Also, here come my parents.” Their car pulls up into the drive way. I stand and pull up Bram. We climb back through the window and make our way downstairs. 

“How were the milkshake?” Bram asks as my parents and sister enter the house. 

“I got my Oreo milkshake, so all is well.” My dad stretches his arms up and tapping the archway into the living room. 

“Like father, like son.” I shoot Bram a sly glance. I know Bram thinks my dad is hot. Which is true, he is a good-looking guy. However, I still have to give my boyfriend shit about it. Before I can, my mother swoops in like a hawk. She stands in our way.

“Nora, go brush your teeth.” My mother has perfected the act of giving commands without breaking eye contact from her true prey. 

“Goodnight, everyone.”

“‘Night, Nora.” Bram let’s out. She makes her way past us on the stairs and up to the bathroom. 

“Let’s have a talk, boys,” my father says nonchalantly. We follow him into the living room and have a sit on the couch. My hands must be shaking because Bram grabs them and holds on tight. I don’t know what my parents could be so angry about. Yes, Bram stayed a later than he was suppose to on a school night. But, it’s still before curfew. 

“Is everything alright?” I ask as they sit across from us on the two arm chairs. 

“I just want to know, what are your intentions with my son?” My father glares at Bram. I’ve never seen him like this. My father only gets ‘mad’ at one thing and that’s the Georgia Bulldogs failing to make an easy pass during a football game. 

“Mr. Spier, what are you talking about?”

“Don’t get lippy with me! I asked you a question.” His fist slammed down on the coffee table.

“Jack!” My mother yelled out.

“What are your intentions with my son?” 

“Dad!”

“I love him!” Bram blurted out. We are all quiet for a moment staring at each other. Then my dad cracks a smile.

“I was just joking with the two of you. We had this all planned out.” My dad starts giggling like a child. My mother covers her mouth with her hands. “That’s what took us so long. We’ve been trying to figure out how to mess with the you both.” 

“Did they fall for it?” Nora yells from the stairs.

“We got them!” Dad proudly sits back with his hands behind his head. 

“I sorry, hon. Your father insisted.” She says this with a huge grin. I just shake my head in disbelief as Bram gives my dad and a handshake and hug. “But I’m glad that your boyfriend feels that way about you.”

“Thanks, Mom. Are you ready to go far away from this place?” I stand to leave.

“Wait a minute.” My mother holds up a hand. “We do want to talk to you about something.”

“If it’s about Bram staying later on a school night, it won’t happen again.” I sit back down.

“No, no, no, no, no. We love having Bram around.” My dad smiles at him. “We have…been…talking about…a few things…between…the two of you.”

“Babe, I’ll take it from here,” Mom interjects.

“Yep, all you.”

“Bram. Sy. Men of your age are very curious sexually.” Please stop. Make it stop. Out of the corner of my eyes now bulging out of the socket eyes I see Bram looking like a deer in the headlights. “We believe that it is perfectly normal for young men to engage in sexual activities. That being said, we want to make sure that you are both using protection.”

“What?” It’s the only thing I can get out.

“Condoms,” Dad adds casually. My face is one fire. Why must everything be such a big deal.

“Mr. and Mrs. Spier,” Bram speaks up. So thankful for his peaceful demeanor right now. “Simon and I have been using protection every time.” Maybe not the best time to let them know you are boning their son. “We take it very seriously and make sure we avoid risk. We were both tested when we started dating.”

“So, you are sexually active?” 

“Yes, Dad.” I look at him. He gets the message not to joke. “We have been for a while. And we do use protection. Every time.”

“I’m so glad to hear that. Well, then I guess we should be heading up to bed. Jack?” My mother stands. She embraces my boyfriend in a tight hug. “Bram, you are welcomed here any day, every day at any time. I’m so glad Simon found you” 

He can only reply with a raspy, “Me too.” Before he can catch his breath after my mom releases him, my dad engulfs him in another tight hug.

“Take care. See you tomorrow.” How does he know what we are doing tomorrow? I swear, sometimes I think my parents have my room under surveillance. “Sy, drive carefully. Get him home safely.”

“Thanks for caring about your son.” 

“Love ya, Sy.” With that, we leave the house. The air is humid, even at 9:30. We have had unseasonably warm weather so far. 

“Do you just want to walk me home? It’s such a nice night out.” 

“Sure.” Bram and I hold hands. Our fingers lace together as we make our way down the drive way. I look around. Even though most people in this neighborhood know about us, not everyone is as cool with it as our families. Once the coast looks clear, we continue down the street. I quickly text my folks that we are walking and place my phone in my pocket. 

“Hey, Garrett is having a after prom party. He’s wanted me to invite the group. What do you think?” 

“Sounds like a solid plan.” I’m actually really excited about prom. Mr. Worth has promised that prom will be 100% inclusive and Ms. Albright has promised to personally crush the genitalia of anyone who thinks about making a comment against us or Ethan and his boyfriend. This was said at the board meeting last month, so it is officially on record. That was passed around the school, making Ms. Albright a hero. 

“Garrett has been asking to make sure Leah comes to the party.” 

“He does, does he?” I give him a side-eyed glance.

“He would like to ask her prom but hasn’t worked up the courage to do so.” 

“Maybe I could talk to Leah.” 

“Would you do that?” Bram looks at me.

“I can’t promise anything. I will try though.” 

“I thank you, Garrett thanks you, and I’m sure Leah will thank you.” He shoots me his trademark sheepish smile. 

“Abraham Louis Greenfeld. You are dirty.” I bump my shoulder into his. He let’s go of my hand to wrap his arm around my shoulder. He kisses my temple. I look at him. 

“I love you.” 

“I know.” Bram cracks a smile.

“You did not just Solo me.” I can’t help but return the smile.

“I love you too, Sy.” He kisses me fully on the lips. “I meant it in front of your parents, I mean it know, and I will always mean it.” 

“I’ll always be yours, Blue.”

“And I yours, Jacques.” We kiss again. We continue walking, our arms around one another. “I can’t believe prom is in two weeks and graduation two after that.” 

“This year has been a blur.”

“It has been the best year.” He holds me tighter. I want to keep walking with him and stay in this moment. But we have reached his house. He turns to face me and embraces me in the warmest hug. I melt. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

“And the day after.” We kiss. 

“Hi boys.” Bram and I look over to see Ms. Greenfeld standing in the doorway. “Sorry to break up the party.” She makes her way down the stone pathway to us. 

“Hey Ms. Greenfeld.” 

“So, this is what your intentions are with my son, Simon?” She gives me an icy look.

“They called, didn’t they?” 

“Yup. Jack was very adamant that I say that.” Bram and I can’t help but laugh. “I’m guessing there’s a pretty good story behind this.” 

“I’ll explain it inside.” Bram turns to kiss me. “I love you.” 

“Love you too.” 

“Bye Simon.” 

“Bye, Ms. G.” I turn to begin my trip back home.

“Text me when you get home.” Bram and his mom stand on their front steps.

“I will!” I take out my phone and see that Abby texted me.

‘Hey Sy, Leah asked about post prom plans. Any thoughts?’

‘Garrett is hosting a party. He really wants Leah there.’

‘GET OUT!’

‘Was a good movie, I couldn’t agree more.’ 

‘Goober. I can’t believe Garrett likes Leah.’

‘Believe it.’ 

I hear a screech behind me. I turn to see several guys jump out of a large blue pick-up truck with a pair of Confederate flags sticking out the back. Before I can run, they’re on me.


	2. Ouch

Chapter 2  
Ouch 

“Ouch.” Everything hurts in my body.

“Emily! Jack!” I hear Bram shouting.

“Bram.” My vision is blurry, but I can just make him out. I reach out and feel his hand touch mine lightly. “Bram.”

“I’m here Simon. I’m right here. Stay still.”

“Simon!”

“Mom.” 

“Simon. Son.” I can hear my dad weeping hysterically. 

“Dad.” 

“You’re okay, Simon. Just be still. Don’t move,” I hear him say. I see them a little more clearly now out of one eye. My mother and father are holding each other on my left. I look over to see Bram on my right. I smile, but even that hurts. “My boy is back.” 

“Are we in the hospital? What happened?”

“You were attacked, Sy.” My mom touches my arm gently and the pain shoots through my body. “Sorry, hon.” 

“A group of boys jumped you on your walk home.” My dad is full out bawling. “I can’t.” He bites his knuckles while the tears roll down his cheeks. 

“It’s okay, Jack.” Bram reaches over to place a hand on my dad’s shoulder. “It’s okay.” But he breaks down and leaves the room. 

“I’ll be right back. Bram stay with him.” Mom walks out after Dad.

“Bram, what happened?”

“It’s not good, Sy. Your left arm is broken. Your legs are pretty banged up and they had to put you…in a coma to get the swelling in your brain down. You had a severe concussion.” I reach up with my good hand and felt the bandages wrapped around my head. As I let my hand slide down, I feel the cotton pad over my right eye. “You took a…a punch to that…side. Doctor says your eye should…heal nicely, they just want to be safe.” Bram is choking back his tears.

“Don’t Bram. It’s not your fault.”

“It is. It was my idea to walk. I should have been there with you.” He is sobbing. I have never seen him like this before. 

“They would have just gotten you too. Don’t blame yourself for this.” 

“I’m so sorry Simon.” He gets up to leave, but I snatch his arm.

“Aaaaaaahhh!” I sat up too quickly. The shock wave courses through every nerve in me. 

“Simon!” Bram helps me back down. “You can’t do that.”

“Then you can’t leave me.” I smile at him.

“I’ll never leave you.” He sits on the edge of my hospital bed. His fingers caress my cheek. It is the only touch that isn’t hurting my body. “I love you, Jacques.”

“I love you, Blue.” My parents enter the room again. My dad seems to have composed himself. He walks over and kneels by the bed, like he’s about to pray. My mother stands beside him with her hands on his shoulders.

“Forgive me, Simon. I feel so guilty. I should have-,” he starts but I hold up my hand.

“All is forgiven. Say 25 Hail Mary’s and let your son borrow the Lexus for prom for penance.” I smirk at him. 

“Fat chance, son.” He smiles as tears streak down his cheeks again. He props himself up and kisses my forehead.

We talk for a while about what happened to me and what I have missed. I’ve been out for almost a week. The attack happened on Sunday night and it’s Friday evening. The cops found me on the curb muttering about a blue truck. I was beaten badly. Some racial and homophobic slurs had been written on me in permanent marker. Luckily, they found the assholes that beat me up racing around in a blue pickup truck. The guys still had permanent marker and blood on them. My blood to be precise. That with the security camera footage from the house we were in front of made for a quick arrest. Georgia doesn’t have hate crime laws, so the dicks were just charged with assault. However, the law firm my dad works for is taking on the case pro bono. Thank you, one of Atlanta’s top 10 best law firms. Two detectives will be in tomorrow to talk about identifying the assailants.

A nurse comes in to check up on me. She tells us everything is looking good apparently. Then the doctor arrives to confirm everything the nurse already told us. They want to keep me over for observation for the next few weeks. I had some absence seizures while I was sedated. Since I was not previously prone to them, they want me to stay in the hospital. They continue on their rounds. Nora pops in about an hour later with Leah, Abby, and Nick. However, that was too many guest, because the nurse rushes in to tell them to leave. They reluctantly do. She also asks for my parents to leave.

“We’ll be back tomorrow, Simon.” My mother kisses my forehead. I must have winced because she makes an apologetic cooing noise. “Love you.”

“See you tomorrow Simon. We have so much to talk about before Monday’s episode of The Bachelor.” He kisses his hand and boops my nose. I chuckle. “I love you, son.” There is a sincerity present, much like the time we talked after I came out. I wish I could stand up and hug him and my mom right now.

“I love you too, Dad.” he makes for the door but Bram stays. 

“Sleep tight, hon,” my mom calls from the doorway. 

“Don’t you have to go?” I look at him quizzically. The nurse guffaws at this.

“Child, I couldn’t drag that boy away from your bed even if I was the strongest woman alive. He only leaves for school.” There is a hint of irritation and admiration in her voice. “Back here at 3:35 every day looking like a sad puppy.”

“That’s my man.” I smile at him. 

“Well, you need to get some rest. Don’t go keeping him up, ya hear?” The death glare from this nurse is spine tingling. And it isn’t even meant for me. 

“Yes, ma’am.” Bram hasn’t taken his eyes off me. He beams down at me. The nurse guffaws once move before leaving. 

“Night boys.” My dad closes the door as they leave. I scooch over despite the pain and tap the bed. Bram slowly gets under the covers with me. It is extremely difficult to find a comfortable spot with all these tubes and wires hooked up to me. Medical dramas are a lie. Finally, we find a good position with his head resting on my chest and my good arm draped over him. We don’t talk. We don’t need to. Also, we fear Nurse Ratchet coming in to yell at us. We slowly drift into sleep like this. This is the best I’ve felt all day. 

 

I wake Saturday morning to a large breakfast. Nora has brought in biscuits and gravy with some eggs bacon on the side. I realize that I am famished. I’m about to dig in.

“Wait, that’s not for you.” My nurse swoops in and takes it away. 

“Simon! That’s for Bram!” Nora and my parents stand in the entrance with my friends. 

“What do you mean? I’m starving!” I look from my family to the nurse and back again.   
“You can’t eat that. Here, you can have some gelatin with some added nutrients.” The nurse drops a plate of murky green Jell-o onto bed tray. He jiggles for an eternity. The toilet flushes and the sink runs for a minute before my boyfriend steps out of the bathroom. 

“Morning everyone. Ooooh, Jell-O.” He goes to take a bite.

“Don’t even. Your breakfast is over there.” I leer at him. 

“Ah, Nora. You shouldn’t have. You know how much I love biscuits and gravy.” He gives her a kiss on the top of her head. If I didn’t know any better, I would say Bram is replacing me. He’s lucky I love him. We all sit down and start to talk. Abby, Nick, and Leah bring me hundreds of get well cards from classmates from school and people around town. They take over the empty bed next to me. We read through a good portion of the cards. My mother suggests I write thank you notes to them all. I think a Facebook post is most suitable. We compromise with a Facebook post for the mass, and letters to people I know don’t have or I am not friends with on social media. That leaves about 200 cards to right instead of 850. Leah, Nick, and Abby leave to buy out a store of cards. They have decided they will write the cards and I can sign them. 

“Like the president,” Nick says. “President Simon Spier and First Gentleman Bram Greenfeld-Spier.” We all laugh at his horrible attempt at whistling Hail to the Chief with his mouth. 

After they leave, the two detectives show up with a group of lawyers and a trauma counselor. Two of the lawyers work with my dad’s firm and are representing me. They shake hands with him when they enter. The rest are lawyers for the men accused of my attack. The detectives ask a few questions while the lawyers wait outside. I answer them the best I can. The big one is if I can identify the men that attack me. That I’m sure I can do. Bram and my parents leave the room. The lawyers stand around the room making sure I’m not being coached by anyone. The detectives show me a packet of photos. I identify 5 out of the 6 men that attacked me. Once I verify those, the defendants’ lawyers leave solemnly with the detectives. My lawyers seem extremely pleased. They talk to my parents while Bram and the counselor comfort me. 

“That was very brave, Simon. Here is my card in case you need to talk to anyone. Call me day or night. Alright?” She nods at me.

“I will.” She places a hand onto Bram’s shoulder. 

“Take care of him, okay?”

“He’s never leaving my sight.” We interlock our fingers. The counselor leaves the room with the lawyers. My parents come over to my bed. 

“Do you need anything sweetie?” My mom brushes the lock of brown hair sticking out from my bandages away from my eyes. 

“I’m good. Thanks Mom. I’m just very tired. I’m gonna go to bed if that’s alright with you.” 

“You got, hon.” She kisses my forehead before her and Dad leave. I slide over in the bed to make room for Bram. He slides in and we fall into our position again. Again, we don’t talk. We just drift into a peaceful sleep.


	3. Hospital Heist

Chapter 3  
Hospital Heist

The days following me waking up move quickly. They consist of tests, therapy, visits from specialists, my family and friends, and sleep. A lot of sleep. I am utterly beat by the end of the day. But I always have Bram there to cuddle with when I do sleep. He rarely leaves my side. The only time he is gone is when he leaves for school. He brings me work daily that I need to finish to graduate. I’m working on some when my doctors enter with my nurse. 

“Knock, knock.” The woman pops her face in. “Hey, Simon. How are you feeling? Your eye looks much better today.” A lie, but I appreciate it. The swelling has gone down, but I have a lovely shiner. Dr. Chandrashekar is a middle-aged Indian woman with a round friendly face. I like her a lot. She is funny and is always telling off my other doctor for being too strict. That is the tall lanky man behind her with the long face like the dull suitor in every British romance. Dr. Lawson is the equivalent Professor Snape in this hospital. He has filed complaints against Bram for breaking visiting hour rules, he won’t let me eat anything except a prescribed nutritionally enhanced mush, and only refers to Bram as my ‘friend.’

“I’m doing pretty well.” I place down my math textbook and sit up a bit. Dr. Chandrashekar pulls up a chair and sits down next to me. Dr. Lawson is looking at my monitors and lab results. “How are you?”

“I’m glad to hear that. I’m doing well. We have your results from yesterday’s tests.” Her smile fades. “It appears that the damage is taking a little longer to heal than we are hoping. Your scans are showing some unusual flares. Have you been having a harder time concentrating lately?”

“A little. I just thought it was the drugs and being tired.” My heart is beating quicker.

“It is a common symptom of those who suffer from concussions.” She places a hand on my elbow. “We are wanting you to stay hospitalized a little bit longer.”

“How much longer?” 

“Sunday,” Dr. Lawson gives me a short, curt answer. He follows it with some medical jargon I don’t quiet understand. 

“What Dr. Lawson is trying to say is that your brain is having a difficult time processing what happened. I want to stress to you that this could be a long-term symptom. Putting too much stress on yourself might cause more serve problems such as the seizures to reoccur. We want to be safe and make sure you are clear before we release you.” Dr. Chandrashekar looks at me sympathetically. 

“My prom is this Saturday. Is there no way I can be let go a day early?” I look to Dr. Lawson. 

“Absolutely not. You need to stay until Sunday.” He glares at me.

“Richard, it is one day,” Chandrashekar pleads with him. 

“No, Vaani. Sunday.” With that, he quickly exits the room.

“I will talk to the to stickler. In the meantime, just rest.” She pats my shoulder and leaves.

My heart drops inside my chest. Bram and I have been waiting for this day for months. Now, I’m confined to this room for 3 more days. The rest of the day slowly ticks by. I break the news to Bram. He tells me he will stay with me on Saturday.

“No, you should go and have a good time,” I tell him. 

“I won’t have a good time without you.” He is so sweet. And not just sometimes, like all the time. “Nothing you can say will make me go.” 

“You’re the best.” He swoops in and kisses me.

“I also got you something special. Close your eyes and hold out your hand.” I follow his instructions. Then my hand is slammed into the bed by something heavy. I open my eyes to see my world history textbook. “Leah says you need to finish your part of the colonization of Africa.” 

“Thanks babe.” I place the book on the table with the others. I turn to see Bram holding a gallon of milk and a package of Oreos. “I love you.” I pull him into a kiss. 

“Get a room!” We break to see Nick smiling. Abby and Leah push past him into the room.

“They have one. We thought we would bring a party, but it looks like you guys already did.” Leah places down a grocery bag filled with Oreos and milk. 

“You guys are the best.” I sit up as Abby breaks out a stack of red Solo cups and spoons. Her and Leah serve the food while Nick sets up a Bluetooth speaker to play music. 

“So, did you find out when you’re being released?” Abby hands me a cup filled with cookies and milk. Leah plops a straw in for me. 

“Sunday.” I take a sip of my drink. 

“You can’t go to prom then,” Leah says. 

“Dude, that sucks. We already paid for our tuxes.” Nick sits on the end of the bed. “And we look so good in them.” 

“We look good in everything.” He goes in for a high five, but my right hand has the cup while the other is in a sling. 

“Maybe later then,” he drops his hand awkwardly.

“This is unacceptable.” Abby finishes the last cup. 

“Dr. Lawson won’t let me leave,” I say defeatedly. 

“No, Abby is right,” Leah is getting that twinkle in her eye when she is coming up with a devious plan. “I’m putting together a team. We are going to pull the greatest heist this hospital has ever seen.”

“Just like Ocean’s Eleven!” Abby jumps up with excitement. 

“Exactly. I will be the brains of the operations. Abby, our con woman. Bram, our getaway driver. Nick, you’re in charge of getting Simon out. Simon, you’re the tech specialist.” Leah’s face stops in contemplation. 

“What?” Nick downs his cookie mush. 

“We need a surveillance guy.” She is thinking of all the possible people. 

“What about Garrett?” I suggest.

“I’m sure he will help,” Bram adds.

“Alright. I’ll call him.” Leah gets up and walks to the corner.

“That was easy,” I whisper to the others. We all grin and finish our drinks. Leah rejoins us. 

“Soooo?” Abby looks at her.

“He’s in,” Leah replies. 

“Anything else?” Nick asks. 

“No.” She looks at us baffled. “Anyway, let’s go. We have a lot of stuff to get done and only two days to plan our prep.” They all stand up. Nick gives me a quick hug.

“Don’t worry, man. We’ve got you covered.” He moves over for the girls to hug me. 

“Get ready for prom, Sy,” Abby ruffles my hair.

“Simon,” Leah grabs my face with both of her hands. She stares intensely into my eyes “I’ll text you later with details for Spier’s Six.” They leave. 

The next two days are busy but slow. I can’t wait for this. Leah has actually come up with a genius plan. She has thought of everything. And I mean everything. Prom starts at 17:00 while our plan goes into action at 15:00. Leah has insisted we use military time during our mission. 

Come Saturday, it feels like the slowest day. The anticipation along with the restlessness I feel, I am going stir crazy. Bram hasn’t been around all day either. He’s been help prepare everything for tonight. I’m relieved when my family comes to visit. They even bring Bieber. He is so excited that he jumps up on the bed. He lays on my chest and licks my face. They bring Uno to play. After several games, I look up to see Nick in scrubs he borrowed from his dad and a wheelchair. It must be 15:00. He is surprised to see my parents. 

“Nick, what are you doing here?” Nora notices him after Bieber runs over to Nick and starts jump up to be pet. 

“I’m doing a…uh…work study.” He is a horrible liar. That’s why Abby is currently distracting Dr. Lawson with an interview for the school paper. She is ‘writing’ a column for the college prep section of the Creekwood Calling. 

“Little Fro, this is White Pele. Do you copy? Over.” Garrett’s voice comes over a walkie. 

“This is Little Fro. Mama, Papa, and Goldie Locks are in the room with Baby Bear.” Bieber barks at Nick. “They have Popstar with them. Over” 

“This is Grandmaster,” Leah says, “proceed with plan. Do not engage parental units. Over.”

“This is White Pele, Sally Bowles is covering Professor Snape. And Nurse Ratchet is with Dr. Chandrashekar three rooms down. Window is closing. Over.” 

“I’m sorry about this Jack and Emily, but I’m abducting your son for the evening.” I slide my legs over the edge of the bed. Nick rushes over to help into the wheelchair. 

“What is going on?” My mother is completely confused. “You’re not living until tomorrow.”

“I promise I will explain later. Meet us at the house in 30 minutes. Love you guys.” Nick is pushing me out the door before I can finish getting my words out.   
“This is Little Fro. Package is secure. In route to exit. Over.”

“This is Grandmaster. Good work, Little Fro. Guide them home, White Pele. Over.” We pass a nurses’ station and I see Garrett standing in some scrubs as well. 

“Little Fro, take a left after the nurses’ station. Over.”

“Roger that White Pele. Over.” Nick turns sharply after the counter and heads towards the elevator. He presses the down button. “Little Fro and Baby Bear are the elevator. Over.” 

“Grandmaster to Baby Bear, do you copy. Over.” Nick hands me his walkie. 

“Loud and clear, Grandmaster. Over,” I say. 

“Proceed with Wilkommen. Over.” Leah is so serious right now, it’s hard to keep from laughing.

“Roger that. Over.” I get my cell phone out. I mess with a couple of thing to encrypt my phone and dial Dr. Lawson’s office number.

“Excuse me one moment. Hello, this is Dr. Lawson.” His voice sounds shrill over the phone.

“Dick Lawson?” I say in my best rendition of a hilly billy accent. 

“Yes. Who is this?” he replies.

“This is Chet from Peaches’ Towing. Did you realize you parked illegally?” Nick laughs behind me. The elevator opens and we enter.

“What do you mean parked illegally?” 

“Sir, you’re in a handicapped spot. Either you move your car or we move it for you.” 

“I have to move my car really quickly. I’ll be right back.”

“Take your time,” Abby says, replying to Dr. Lawson. 

“I’ll be right down.” He hangs ups on me.

“This is Sally Bowles. Wilkommen was a success. Heading to rendezvous point with White Pele as we speak. Over.” 

“Excellent work agent. Little Fro, what’s your current status? Over.” Leah is having way too much fun with this.  
“On the elevator. Heading down to 2nd floor. Over.” 

“Taillights, move into position. Over.” 

“Roger that, Grandmaster. Over.” Bram’s voice is sexy. But it sounds especially sexy over the walkie. We reach the first floor and head towards the entrance. No one pays attention to us. We look like a nurse and his patient. When we get outside, I see Bram dressed in his full Tuxedo, looking suave as all hell. He is leaning up against a 1960’s red muscle car. 

“This is Taillights. I have eyes on the prize. Over.” Nick rolls me over to my boyfriend. Bram helps me up while Nick grabs the door. Bram sets me in the passenger seat and buckles me in. “Baby Bear is secure in Diabla Roja. Over.” 

“Excellent work team. White Pele, Sally Bowles, and Little Fro, meet at the extraction point. Over.” 

“Roger that.” 

“See you guys back at the house.” Nick is leaning the car while Bram gets in behind the wheel. He stands up while we drive off.

“Hello sir. What’s your name? 

“The names Greenfeld, Abraham Greenfeld.” We laugh as we make our way to my house.


	4. Prom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in posting. Busy time at work for me. Have a lot more free time now that my project is done! Well, enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 4  
Prom

“There.” Dad steps to the side and I view myself in the mirror. The tux looks odds on my bruised body, especially compared to the hospital gowns. My left arm is still in a cast which made dressing extra fun. The doctors told me only two more weeks left since it is healing nicely. The black eye is still dark but is starting to fade along the edges. My dad reaches over my shoulders to adjust the bowtie he just tied. “Now it’s good. You look good, son.” 

“Thanks, Dad.” Tears start to build in his eyes. “Don’t start that. You’re going to make me cry.” And right on cue, I start crying.

“I can’t help it.” He tries to wipe them away, but more tears just replace them. “A few weeks ago, I thought I had lost you.” He sweeps me up in a hug. 

“Dad.” I can’t even get my arms up around him this hug is so tight. 

“I love you, Simon.” He breaks the embrace. We lock eyes. “I know this year as be a rough one, and this experience has been the worst. But never forget that your mother and I are here for you. We love you so much.” I break down and begin to cry again. Then we both begin to laugh as he hands me a tissue. My mom enters.

“How’s my boys doing? Oh my, you look so handsome.” Now my mom is starting to get teary-eyed.

“Mom, we are done with crying now. Don’t start us up again.” I wipe the tears away.

“I’m good. I’m good.” 

“No, you’re not.” My dad hands her a tissue.

“Honey, can you run and get the camera from the office?” 

“Sure thing. Be right back,” my dad says as he walks out. 

“How you holding up?” My mom rubs my arm. 

“I’m fine. Really, I am.” She gives me the psychoanalysis look and I can’t help but let everything out. “I scared, Mom. What if I’m never going to be safe again? Am I going to be looking over my shoulder for the rest of my life?”

“No, this won’t happen again.” Her voice doesn’t give me too much confidence.

“Will I? I have been humiliated repeatedly, threatened, and beaten nearly to death since being outed. What if the next time it gets worse?” I’m start feeling the anxiety building up in me. It’s becoming hard to breathe.

“Simon, look at me. I’m not going to lie, it’s not going to be smooth. But you need to focus on the good. Think of everything that has changed for the better since then. You have become so much happier. Your friendships seem stronger. And you have found Bram.” I smile at the mention of his name. “I have never seen you happier than you are with him. You have to hold on to that.”

“I will. In the meantime, want to help me with his shiner?” I hold up some cover up. In no time, she hides the bruise. “Thank you. It looks great.” 

“You look almost perfectly healthy. But Dr. Chandrashekar still wants you to take it easy.” She sits on the edge of the desk. “There’s still a risk of seizures.” 

“I know.” I turn around. “They’re okay with me going to prom?”

“Dr. Chandrashekar is. I may have told Dr. Lawson that if he says anything on the subject, we would have some words he wouldn’t like.” I love that my mom is threatening a doctor so I can go to prom. “I told you that you deserve everything you want. And that includes prom with your friends.”

“Thank you.” 

“Listen, I know you have your friends and now a boyfriend. However, I don’t want to lose you. You’re about to go to college. We have 2 more months before you and Bram go off to California. Simon, can you still make time for us?” Mom grabs my hands. “Don’t forget about us.”

“I won’t. We still have The Bachelorette this summer. And now you and I can talk about all the cute guys the have on this season.” She chuckles. “I’m not going anywhere, Mom. I will still be here with you and Dad and Nora.” 

“Thank you, Simon.” She stands to hug me. 

“Also, let’s turn Thursday into game night. Sound good?” 

“Sounds perfect. And of course, the Greenfelds are invited as well.” With that my Dad enters with the camera. 

“Let’s do this. Nora is waiting for us.” We make our way down to the backyard. Nora is playing with Bieber. 

“It’s about time. Looking good, Simon!” 

“Thanks. Can Nora and I get a photo?” We pose and start our photo shoot. It feels great to be here with them. It feels like old times. We take what seems like a hundred photos. This moment makes me think about what my mother said. I don’t want to miss these days. It’s something I haven’t thought about too much before now. Their lives will continue on and I won’t be here with them. It makes me dejected for a moment. 

“Well, it’s time to head over to Nick’s. Everyone ready?” my mom asks. 

“Yeah. Nora, want to ride in over with me in the Lexus?” Her eyes light up. 

“Sorry, son. No driving until you’re seizure free.” My dad claps my back.

“Fine.” I resign to this fact. Not being able to drive was something the doctors have discussed with me previously. Dr. Lawson was more than happy to give me my list of limitations more than once. We load into the car and make our way over to Nick’s. Leah, Garrett, Nick, Abby, and Bram are already there with their parents. Bram is stunning in his white tux jacket. “Hey, handsome.”

“Uh…Hey.” He gapes at me. 

“Is everything okay?” I ask. He snaps out of his trance.

“Yeah...I mean yes,” he bumbles out. “You look incredible, Sy.” 

“I can clean up pretty nicely,” He gives me a peck. 

“Alright you two, let’s save that for later,” Abby shouts across the yard. “We need to take these photos and get this party on the road.” We gather together and quickly take about a thousand photos. Then we rush into the limo. I end up in between Bram and Leah. Garrett and Nick argue over whose prom mix is better and which should they play. To which Abby points out that they are the same songs in different orders.

“I bet you missed this,” Leah whispers into my ear.

“Actually, I did.” I smile at her. “You look amazing, Leah. Absolutely amazing.” And she does. Her hair is done in an intricate braid design and her dress is very Leah. It is part rocker, part free-spirit, and part prom dress. 

“Why, thank you good sir. You’re looking pretty dapper yourself,” she says with her faux aristocratic southern accent. She pulls out an imaginary fan like a southern belle. “I do declare, we’ll have the pick of suitors at the ball this evening.” 

“You most certainly will.” I do my best Foghorn Leghorn impression. “But now I say, young lady, there is one beau in particular that I know will be attending Yale in the fall and majoring in economics. That’s only what, an hour or so away from Columbia.” 

“Does he happen to be in this very coach? He is certainly a possible suitor this evening. We shall see where the night takes us.” She raises her eyebrows and smiles with only her bottom teeth. “I feel so beautiful.” I laugh way too loud for the limo. Then Leah laughs, which makes me laugh even more.

“Thank you for rescuing this damsel in distress,” I say motioning to myself. “I appreciate it.” 

“You’re welcome. I know you would have done the same. If you were as smart and brave as me.” 

“Oh, alright then, Grandmaster.”

“My plan worked, didn’t it?” 

“It did. I would hug you right now.” I lift up my broken arm slightly. 

“I’ll help you out.” She hugs me tightly around my neck. “I’m gonna miss you next year, Simon.”

“I’m gonna miss you too.” I place my right hand on her arm. 

“Promise me, we’ll talk at least once a month.”

“I promise. Just not Mondays.” She laughs.

“What is it with your family and the Bachelor?”

“I ask myself that question every Monday,” Bram chimes in. 

“I thought you loved that show!” I’m in complete shock.

“Only because of you.” He is too sweet sometimes. I kiss him. By this time, we have pulled up to the Atlanta Botanical Garden’s Day Hall. We hop out of the limo and head in. Before we make our grand entrance into the party.

“Sy.” Nick pulls me over to the side just before we walk in. “Let me know if we need to dip out, alright?” 

“Yeah, sure,” I reply.

“I mean it. If you get tired or someone starts messing with you, let me know.” 

“My parents talked to you, didn’t they?” My eyes narrow on him.

“Your mom did her Jedi mind trick on me.” 

“Let’s go, man.” We meet up with everyone outside the doors to the hall. I grab Bram’s hand. 

“Ready?” He glides his fingers between mine and squeezes tightly. 

“Yes.” We walk in to thunderous applause. People run up to hug me or clap my back. Everything is a blur. Next thing you know, I’m out on the dance floor with Bram. Now, in all of our e-mails and conversations after that, not once did Bram ever mention he can dance. I’m not talking about being a decent dancing for a guy. I mean he looks like a back up dancer in a hip-hop video. A really good one. I, on the other hand, look like a one fin fish flopping around. But I don’t care. We are having way too much fun. Then my legs and head start to feel tired. I start heading towards our table when Bram stops me.

“Hold on for one minute.” He draws me close. “There about to draw the king and queen.”

“Really? I can hear Taylor from the table or on the moon for that matter. I need to sit.”

“Just wait.” Taylor Metternich takes the stage set up for the DJ. 

“Good evening Creekwood High! Are you all having a good time?” Everyone lets out a collective ‘Whooo.’ “Alright, it is now the moment you’ve been waiting for. It’s time to announce your prom king and queen. Martin, the envelope please.” Martin Addison pops up on the stage. 

“Just one announcement from Mr. Worth. Please remember that drinking and driving is a crime and to be responsible.” Taylor yanks the mic away from Martin.

“Thank you, Martin. And this year’s prom kings are-,” While she rips open the envelope, it takes me a full second to realize that she said kings. Not king and queen. “Bram Greenfeld and Simon Spier!” The entire hall burst with cheers that rival the greeting our entrance earned. Streamers and balloons drop from somewhere as Bram leads me through the crowd. He helps me up onto the small stage. Taylor pounces on me. “Congrats.” 

Martin hands her the crowns. She places them on our heads, then sashes are thrown over us. I can’t really focus on anything. My senses are overloaded not that my brain could process any of it anyway. I just hold onto Bram for support. He moves us to the front of the stage. A hundred cameras flash from the crowd. Bram wraps his arm around me. I look to him and he lays a kiss on me. Our classmates erupt again. I smile at my Blue. He has a bashful look on his face.

“You knew this entire time?” I ask.

“I did,” he answers back over the celebration. “I’ve been working on this for a while now.”

“You’re perfect, you know that?” He has no response to that other than another one of his shy grins. 

“Hey, what song do you guys want?” Taylor shouts into my ear. I look to Bram, who shrugs his shoulders. I think for a quick second and turn to Taylor. I whisper into her ear my selection. “Okay. We can do that.” 

“Ladies and Gentleman, make way for your 2018 Creekwood High Prom Kings, Bram Greenfeld and Simon Spier!” Martin announces us as we make our way to the dance floor. Everyone gathers around in a circle. I see Leah, Abby, Nick, and Garrett close by. Leah and Abby are giddier than ever. Nick is full out crying tears of joy. I turn to face Bram. He tries to get into a slow dance position.

“Not that kind of song,” I tell him.

“What song did you pick?” He’s so cute when he’s baffled. 

That’s when Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance with Somebody starts pounding through the speakers. Have I mentioned I’m a wonderfully terrible dancer? I go all out with some spot-on lip-syncing. Another crowd pleaser. Bram grabs my good arm and spins me followed by a dip. He leans in and whispers in my ear.

“I love you, Simon Spier.” 

“I love you, Bram Greenfeld.”


	5. Viral

Chapter 5  
Viral

“Your majesty, King Simon of Creekwood!” Garrett announces has I exit the bathroom. It has been his running gag of the night. 

“Revelry!” I shout out in response. 

“Revelry!” my adoring subjects call back before they take a drink. 

“Simon, I just want to say that I’m glad you’re dating my best friend.” Garrett leans in close to me. “I mean it, man. You’re a good dude.”

“Thanks, Garrett.” He stares at me with a drunken grin. “Do you need to use the bathroom?”

“Yes. I do.” With that he slides into the bathroom and I head back out to the deck where Nick is playing the guitar and Leah is tapping a beat on a set of bongos. They sing a beautiful version of Brown Eyed Girl. A group of pretty mellow people hang out on the deck, while the partiers are down in the pool and yard. Since I can’t drink, I just hang out up where it’s quieter. 

Garrett lives in a hill-top mansion on the outskirts of town. One of those houses you can’t see from the road or your neighbor’s house. He’s mother is an executive for Coca-Cola and his father is an accountant. They also just happen to be out of town this weekend. The perfect recipe for a party. 

I look around for Bram but don’t see him with the group. He must have gone for a walk. I take out my phone see he texted me. 

‘Meet up me up on fourth floor.’

‘B up in a min’

‘I want to show you something’

I start to make my way through the crowd back to the house. I get stopped several times to shout ‘Revelry’ to the people inside. It takes several tries to find my way around everything. The house is already a maze if you don’t know the layout and there is a throng of horny teens around every corner. Which is crazy since it is already 1am. Pretty sure, half these people don’t even go to Creekwood. Eventually, I find the grand spiral stairs that lead up. Yes, it was that kind of house. The steps are hell on my legs and it hits me that I haven’t been really sat since they served dinner. When I reach the second floor, I am beat and take a breather before continuing my ascension. On the fourth-floor landing there is a trail of arrows that lead down the hall. I muster the strength and follow the them to a bedroom. The room is lit by lanterns. Bram stands in the center of a semi-circle of pillows and blankets in his pajama pants and a tank top.  
“You have never looked sexier,” I say with a chuckle. 

“I feel pretty name sexy. But it would be better if you joined me.” I cross the room and kick off my shoes.

“I kind of need help with that.” Bram steps up to me. In one quick movement, he has my belt off. He helps me change into my pajamas and we lay down in the pile of what seems to be the comfiest blankets in the world. I might be saying that because at this point a blanket made of steel wool would be comfy to me. Bram props himself up with several pillows and I rest my head on his shoulder. Outside the large picture, you can just see the tops of the buildings downtown. It’s a spectacular view. We just lie there quietly until the thunder roars overhead. Shortly after, rain starts to pelt the window. We can hear the people start to scatter out of the rain. A little while later we hear the cars start pulling out of the driveway. Garrett ordered several party buses to take everyone home. 

There’s a knock at the door and we look to see Leah, Abby, and Nick in their soaked clothes. 

“Mind if we join you?” Nick asks. His hair is just a wet mop of curls draped in his face. 

“Sure,” Bram responds. “There’s a bathroom in through that door to change.” 

“Dibs on bathroom first,” Abby calls out. “Let’s go Leah.” They slip into the bathroom and close the door. 

“You guys don’t mind if I change in here, do you? I just don’t want to make it awkward.” 

“We don’t mind,” I tell Nick.

“It won’t be awkward for us. We’ve both seen it. Not interested.” Bram looks down at me and grins. Nick whips his wet shirt at us. 

“Hey, I’m broken here. I don’t want to get back to the hospital,” I yell.

“I’m sorry your majesty.” Nick bows. 

“Revelry,” I say half-heartedly.

“Revelry!” Abby and Leah shout from the bathroom. They emerge with towels wrapped around their heads and join us in what Leah decided to call the Pit of Comfort. We squeeze together and watch the storm roll overhead. 

“I’m going to miss you guys,” I mumble out.  
“What was that, Sleepy Simon?” Nick teases. 

“Uh oh, Sleepy Simon is here.” Leah reaches over to pinch my cheek. “Sleepy Simon is so adorable.”

“I’m not Sleepy Simon.” I am Sleepy Simon. Sleepy Simon is what my family has dubbed my ultra-affectionate tired persona. “I just love you guys. 

“Yup, Sleepy Simon.” Abby pats my head. I sit up quickly.

“Seriously though. I don’t think I could have finished this year with all of you. I made some big mistakes and have hurt you, guys, in a way that is unforgivable. But you forgave me. I can’t thank you enough.” Nick gets up to his knees and hugs me. Two things occur to me. The first is I’ve received more hugs in the past week than my entire life. The second is that Nick gives really amazing hugs. In the fourteen years, we have only hugged a few times. But he is really good at it. 

“Sleepy Simon, you are my best friend,” Nick says. “I may want to kick a soccer ball at you for going to Stanford instead of Berkeley with me. But I’ll travel the hour to visit you at that awful place as much as I can.” 

“Good, cause Bram and I are never going to visit you up in that trash heap,” I retort. “I’m sorry that was so mean. Is it too late for you to transfer Stanford?”

“Alright. No more Sleepy Simon or I’ll start crying.” We lie back in our spots. 

“What’s our plan for tomorrow?” Leah places her head on my shoulder. 

“Waffle House,” Nick spits out.

“Definitely, Waffle House,” Bram agrees. 

“Let’s go swimming!” Abby drunkenly yells. 

“Shhhhhh!”

“Sorry. But let’s go swimming if it’s not raining,” she whispers.

“We can go to Buford Dam Park,” Bram suggests. 

With that our plans are all set and I quickly drift asleep. It’s not an easy sleep. I dream of the attack. Everything is so clear and vivid. When I hit my head on the sidewalk in the dream is when the thunder crashes above. I jolt up to a seated position. Cold sweat runs down all over my body. 

“Sy, are you okay?” Bram calls from the window. His face is in complete panic as he starts to get up.

“I’m fine. A nightmare,” I start with a hoarse and groggy voice. I hold up a hand to stop him from moving, but he is at my side quickly. 

“Simon, you’re sweating bullets. Let’s go to the bathroom.” He leads me to the bathroom and closes the door. I remove my sweat soaked clothing while Bram runs the tub. My bruised body is sore. Both legs are marked purple toes to hips and my back is scratched from the side walk. The welt they left on my chest with the baseball bat is starting to fade. Bram holds out his hand for me and helps me into the tub. The water is cool against my hot skin. I slide down until the water is up to my shoulders and attempt to keep my cast out of the water. “You okay?”

“This is perfect. Thank you.” My hand brushes his chin. He grabs it and kiss my fingers. 

“Just relax.” I close my eyes. Bram takes a washcloth to wipe my head and neck. I must have fallen asleep, because I wake to him carry back to the Pit of Comfort. I want to say something but I’m so tired, I just rest in his arms. No nightmares return. Just sweet dreams of my Blue.

“Good morning, Simon,” Leah calls out to me. I pry my open to her right above me and smiling. “WAFFLE HOUSE TIME!”

“Go away!” I try to turn to my side but forget I have a cast. “Owww.” 

“Yeah, forgot about that. Get up and get dressed.” She stands up.

“What time is it?” I ask. 

“10:45. So move it.” She leaves me and I sit up. Everyone is gone.

I get changed as quickly as I can. Tying your shoes with a broken arm sucks, so I just keep them tied and slip them on and off. It was either that or Velcro shoes. I make my way downstairs to find everyone still half asleep in the foyer. Bram is standing by the banister. I wrap my good arm around his neck, drawing him in to kiss the top of his head. He turns to give me a kiss.

“Thanks for last night, handsome,” I say before kissing him again.

“Stop being adorable you two and let’s go get some food.” 

“Is Garrett coming?” Abby asks.

“GARRETT, YOU COMING?” Leah shouts up the stairs. The house is quiet. “I’ll take that as a no.” Leah opens the front door and skips down the stoop.  
“What the hell happened to her last night?” Nick looks at us. We all shrug our shoulders and follow her out the door. “She is way too chipper this morning.” 

We load into a car and Leah drives like she’s in The Fast and the Furious. Part of me is glad I couldn’t drink, because I’d probably be vomiting right now. She loves driving the back roads like this. I roll down the window and let the warm morning air in. I feel Bram’s finger lace with mine. I smile. 

Leah makes it to the nearest Waffle House in no time. She can find a Waffle House anywhere. I’m convinced she has them all memorized. This Waffle House happens to be packed with every Creekwood High School student imaginable. We decide to wait the 15 minutes for a table. 

“So, Leah. Care to tell us what happened last night?” Abby gives her a sly smile. She is sitting on Nick’s lap in the passenger seat. Her legs draped over on Leah’s. 

“Garrett and I had a conversation.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Which led into a bit of making out.”

“Uh-huh.” Abby repeats.

“Which led into us stripping down.” 

“Uh-huh.” 

“Which led to him doing a little something for me.”

“What?!” 

“That explains a lot,” Nick chimes in. Leah flicks his ear playfully.

“Talk in the bathroom.” Abby and Leah hop out of the car and into the Waffle House. 

“So, what were you two up to this morning?” Nick looks back at us. I feel my face start to burn. “Just kidding.” 

“Jerk.” I miss with his hair. Then I get a text from Leah along with about 80 other messages, 100 missed calls, and 50 voicemails. 

‘Check Facebook.’ This was followed with 5 heart eyes emojis. 

I close the app and see I have over 99+ notifications on Facebook. People have been tagging me in videos, photos, and comments. I open one from Ethan. It’s a video of Bram and I dancing last night at prom. 

‘These two are amazing! So glad to count them as my friends. Love to Bram Greenfeld and Simon Spier! #adorable #relationshipgoals #WHITNEY #creekwoodhsprom2018 #loveislove’

“What is it?” Bram asks.

“We’ve gone viral.” I show him my phone. He scooches closer as Nick pops his head over the seat to see. I start clicking on other notifications. Read through them.

‘Best prom dance ever! #creekwoodhsprom2018’

‘Love this soo much! #toocute’

‘Simon Spier and Bram Greenfeld are the cutest!’

‘Creekwood Prom Kings Killing It On The Dance Floor!”

‘YAAAAAASSSS KINGS, YAAAAASSSS!’

‘King Simon and King Bram of Creekwood #revelery!’

‘My best friend was recently attacked walking home from his boyfriend’s in our quiet suburb of Atlanta. It left him with a broken arm, multiple bruises all over his body, and a severe concussion that caused him to have seizures. After being put into a medically induced coma for a week, his boyfriend rarely left his side. When my friend woke up, his boyfriend helped to care of him. We weren’t sure if he would be able to attend prom. With the help from our best friend, Leah, we snuck him out so he could spend prom with his boyfriend. What he didn’t know was that we have spent the last week canvassing the school for court votes. Well tonight, Creekwood High voted for the school’s first (and I doubt the last) same-sex couple to become prom kings. Love you both. You deserve the best. #loveislove #creekwoodhsprom2018’ Posted by Nick Eisner 8hrs ago.

“Nick! You knew about this?” He gives me a sheepish smile and laughs a little. 

“I’m sorry, but it was too good not to share.” I start getting teary-eyed again. Bram wipes the tears away. 

“Thanks Nick.” Bram reaches up and hugs him. Abby pokes her head out or the restaurant door.

“Hey, stop trying to steal my boyfriend and get in here.” We get out and head inside.

When we walk through the door, the restaurant explodes with celebration. I think how right my mom was. I just need to enjoy the good things in life, like Bram. He spins me around into a dip and kiss me.


	6. The Interview

Chapter 6  
The Interview

The TV studio of Atlanta in the Morning is buzzing with a hundred people. The crew is running all around us getting everything ready for our interview. After Nick’s post went viral two days ago, we had news shows contact us for interviews. The amount of love that poured in for us was surprising. Of course, there were hateful comments but several people took care of that. People were loving their story. Local news, national news, and online reporters flooded us requests. Our parents helped us manage everything. They got Mr. Worth on board so they could miss their morning classes. 

Abby, Nick, Leah, Garrett, Bram, and I are sitting in a dressing room while make-up artists are putting the finishing touches on us. We are all a little nervous to be talking on TV. Bram and I were especially reluctant to do any interviews. After the Creeksecrets post by Martin and mine confessing my love for Blue, we have tried to stay away from the limelight. Obliviously, we haven’t been doing too well. A production assistant comes up to us. 

“You guys have ten minutes,” he tells us. “I’ll be back to get you in five.” 

“Are you ready for this?” I ask Bram. He’s sitting hunched over with his hands clasp across his legs which are shaking. 

“I’m just a little nervous.” He smiles at me. I reach over and place my hand on his knee. 

“We’ll be fine. I’ll be right next to you the entire time.” He leans to kiss me. 

“Whoa. Is this the couple?” We turn to see local crazy conservative televangelist, Pastor Dale Messner. He’s an extremely handsome fit man with a great smile. However, he is known for his homophobic and racist views. Bram and I are the perfect targets for him. 

“This is them.” Messner’s assistant is an uptight looking dude. 

“Well, this may be the biggest con in the world.” The pastor looks us up and down. “You can’t fool all of us. The internet is filled with 15-minute celebrities like you two. You try and trick the good Christian people into believing what you doing is okay.”

“There’s nothing wrong with us,” I tell him sharply.

“There’s something wrong with people like you claiming to be good people and spreading hate,” Nick says putting a hand on my shoulder in support.

“Do you hear something, Samuel?” Dale looks around.

“I think it might be have been someone not knowing their place,” the assistant says. 

“White racist southerners. Way to fit a stereotype.” Abby crosses to the pastor. “Instead of arguing with some teens, you- “

“You will speak when spoken to, negress.” Messner pushes her aside. 

“Hey!” Nick lunges but Abby stops him. 

“He’s not worth it.” 

“Enjoy this because it won’t last. There is a war coming against the delinquents. The good word of our Lord will bring his light to our society and cast sinners like you into damnation.”

“I guess, we’ll be right there with you and your friend here.” Leah looks pretty smug with that comment. 

“What are you implying young lady?” Messner’s assistant looks fabulously furious. Kind of proves her point. 

“I think you know what she is implying hypocrite.” Garrett gets up and starts making a scene. Typical Garrett behavior, but it is perfect right now. “You claim to be ‘Holier than thou,’ but everyone knows you’ve been doing each other.” The make-up crew is snickering now. 

“Say what you will about us. You and your fag friends are disgusting. God knows the truth in our hearts is pure and untainted- “

“Those words have the same meaning,” Bram interrupts. 

“What did you say to me?” Pastor Dale gives my boyfriend a look of complete contempt. 

“Pure and untainted are synonyms. You were being repetitious.” Bram doesn’t even look directly at the televangelist. He stares back through the mirror. The next moment happened in second. Dale Messner grabbed Bram by the collar and whipped him around. 

“Don’t you talk to me like that, n*****!” The pastor spits in his face and throws him against the vanity.

Next thing I know, I’m on top of that disgusting prick. His face is bloody and nose is broken. Garrett and Nick are pulling me off of Messner. His assistant is screaming.

“HELP!”

“Let me go!” I scream. 

“My nose.” 

“Simon, calm down!”

“Help!” 

“Don’t you ever touch him!” My voice is coarse. My parents push past Samuel who is in hysterics in the doorway. 

“Help!”

“Simon.” My mother leaps over the fallen pastor and grabs my face. “Simon, look at me.” 

“Simon, I’m fine,” I hear Bram say behind me. 

“I’m sorry.” I take a breath. That’s when I realize my jaw is sore and my broken arm is throbbing. 

“What happened?” My mother cradles my head.

“Messner insulted Bram and threw him into the vanity mirror,” Leah says. “Simon moved to catch him but this idiot hit him in the jaw. Then Sy kicked his ass.” 

“You’ll pay for this, you faggot!” Messner’s hands hold his face.

“What did you call my son?” My dad is on the bloody mess of a man in a heartbeat. “What did you call my son?” Dad towers over the TV pastor. This is him angry. He’s terrifying. He has one hand on Messner’s collar and the other clenched at his side. 

“I called him what he is. I have powerful friends.” 

“Jack, don’t.” 

“Yeah.” Dad dropped him. “You may have powerful friends, but I am a damn good attorney. You ever come near my son or his boyfriend, or any they know again, I will sue you for those millions you’ve collected from those poor saps in your congregation.”

“Alright, let’s get everyone ready- What happened?” The production assistant is looking around. I notice my friend’s parents are crowding the doorway. 

“These deviants attacked me.” Messner’s voiced is muffled by a handkerchief he has drawn from his pocket. A make-up artist walks over to the production assistant and tells me everything. He presses a button on his head set pack around his belt. 

“I need security up to dressing room D right away to escort Pastor Messner and his party off the premises.” Security gets there in a minute to take Dale and Sam away. Due to this whole mess, we miss our interview time. We decide to go to the Waffle House before going back to school while our parents went to work. Everyone just talks about what a jerk Messner was and hoping my dad would sue him. But I wasn’t thinking about that. I was thinking about Bram. He keeps looking at me with a glimmer in his eyes. I know the look. 

“Hey, I forgot something at home. I’m gonna run back and get it. Bram can you drive me?” I stand up.

“Subtle.” Leah rolls her eyes at me. 

“It was worth a try.” Bram grabs my arm and drags me towards the door.

“We’ll see you guys at school,” he shouts back to everyone. They just laugh. 

Bram drives as fast as he can back to my house, however he still obeys all the rules of the road. I am really missing driving right now. We could have been home by now. And possibly already in my bedroom. We eventually make it and dash into the house. Bieber goes crazy when we walk through the door. 

“I’ll be back Biebs.” We run up the stairs and into my bedroom. I slam the door. When I turn around Bram is on me. We make out and walk over to my bed. We fall onto the mattress. He gets on top of me.

“When you punched that guy, I just have to say that was hot.” Bram shoves his tongue in my mouth. His hands undo my pants and slides everything off in one quick move. He reaches up and grabs a condom. He slides it on me. Since it has been a while, we go twice. 

After we’re done, he flops done next to me. We lay for a minute trying to catch our breaths. 

“So, defending your honor equals great sex. Good to know.” I look over at Bram and smile. He smiles back at me. 

“Do you think you have another round in you?” 

“Are you serious?” I look at him a little nervously. 

“No, I’m exhausted.” He gives a weak laugh. “I don’t even want to go to school.”

“Let’s stay here then.”

“I’ve skipped school only once before. That was because of you. You’re a bad influence on me, Mr. Spier.” I snuggle close to him. Bram and I stay in bed for a while just talking. That’s until Bieber finally knocks the door open. He jumps up on the bed and runs all over us. We get up after deciding to take Biebs for a walk. The day is beautiful out. I grab Bram’s hands, but he quickly slips his hand out of mine.

“What’s that all about?”

“It’s not safe.” He looks around.

“We are fine.” 

“Simon, look at your arm. You eye is still bloodshot and bruised.”

“It was one instance and they caught the guys.”

“Not everyone is okay with us.” 

“I don’t care what they think anymore, Bram.” 

“You should, Simon. Those are the people that are going to attack you again.” 

“I can handle myself. I took care of Messner today.”

“No, you can’t handle yourself.” 

“Are we supposed to hide then?”

“We have to be safer in public.” 

“For how long?” I’m getting frustrated now. This is the first time we have fought.

“I don’t know!” 

“We can’t live like that, Bram!”

“We don’t have a choice, Simon!” 

“I am not living like that!” I start walking back home with Bieber. 

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going home, Bram.” 

“Fine.” He starts to follow me.

“I think we need some time apart.” 

“What?”

“We have spent the last week together. And that doesn’t include the week I was in a coma. I need some alone time.” 

“Alright. I’ll call you later then?” 

“Fine.” We go our separate ways. I walk quickly back to my house to see my family is home. Inside, my dad is waiting in the living. 

“There he is. Everything okay? The school called.” My dad gives me a look. I sit down placing my head on his shoulder. “Sy, what’s the matter?”

“Bram and I had a fight.” I explain everything that happened. 

“I’m so sorry, Sy.” My dad puts his arm on my leg. 

“It just sucks.” 

“I know, bud.” He pushes himself up off the couch. “Come with me.” 

I get up to follow him. He leads the way down to the basement. We walk down the stairs which open up into our makeshift hang out room. Nothing compared to Nick’s. We cross to the door to that leads to his workout room. I’ve haven’t been in this room since I was 10 years old. He has updated a lot of the equipment in here since then. 

“What are we doing down here?” 

“You and I are gonna train every day until you leave for college.” 

“Every day?”

“Every day. And we’ll sign up for self-defense classes.”

“Are you sure you’ll have time for this?” I’m walking around looking at the weights he has.

“I’m going to make time for this. Simon,” he says with tear, “I can’t lose you. You’re my son and I love you so much. I will always love you. No matter what. I’m sure by now you’ve figured out I rely on you for everything.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s not like I have to teach you how to use an excel spreadsheet once a month.” Now we’re both crying and laughing.

“Or how to switch the TV to the right mode.” I walk over to hug him. We are both weeping into each other’s shoulder. “Okay. Okay. Let’s keep it together.”

“I didn’t think you had any more tears in you,” I say chuckling.

“I’m never out of them.” He wipes his face. “I’ll create a schedule for our workouts. It will be mostly mornings before we go to work.”

“Sounds good.” We make our way out of the room. He hits the light switch on the way out.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you. Will be carpool together or are you to cool to drive with your dad to work?” I got a summer job working in the IT department at my dad’s law firm. I’ve been working there part-time after school and weekends, but now it will be 40 hours a week. 

“Well, since I can’t drive myself I think I’m stuck riding with you.” We climb the stairs up to the kitchen where Nora is starting to cook for Taco Tuesday. She is bopping to some music and is in a really good mood. 

“What’s up buttercup?” Dad goes in to scoop up some freshly grate cheese, but my sister smacks his hand away.

“One, get your hand away from my cheese, Dad!” He sneaks some anyway. “Two, I got some good news. I’ve been selected for Chopped Junior!” 

“Nora that is amazing!” I scoop her up into my arms. “You are going to crush it.”

“I’m so proud of you, Nora.” He kisses the top of her head. “I’ve got to call your mother.” He runs out of the room.

“Like I didn’t already tell her.” She turns to me as I sit on a stool at the island counter. “Thank you, Simon.”

“What for?”

“For always being my test subject.”

“When you’re a famous chef with your own restaurant, just remember who tried all of your dishes first.”

“Noted. Is Bram coming over tonight?” 

“Nah. We are taking a day off. How about you and I go see a movie?”

“Really?”  
“Sister/Brother bonding time. We haven’t had that in a while.”

“Sounds good. Now if you’re just going to sit there, get dicing.” She slides a cutting board with a knife and onion on it. 

“Yes, chef.” I get a text right before I start cutting.

‘I’m sorry for what I said to you earlier. I’m worried about you. I love you.’ – Bram

‘Sorry too. Been a long day. C U tomorrow at school. Love you.’ – Simon 

I put down my phone and start dicing the onion under the watchful eye of Nora.


	7. Color War

Chapter 7  
Color Way

My father wasn’t joking about self-defense classes. He signed us up that day for a class at the Creekwood Rec Center on Saturdays. He also wasn’t kidding about working out either. My cardio, according to Dad, is non-existent. Until I get the cast off, he decides to work on just that until I can run a half mile without getting winded or keeling over. 

Wednesday morning, I wake up and get ready for school. Today is filled with rehearsals for graduation on Sunday. Then seniors get to leave early. I hop downstairs to find Nora making biscuits and gravy. We got all the supplies last night after our movie. It was nice to spend time with her. We cried over the sappy love story we saw and laughed at how ridiculous we were being.

“Morning,” I say as I enter the kitchen.

“Nora, I might have to put my foot down on this. I support you in everything, but you don’t make gravy with anything but cow’s milk.” My dad is looking miserably at the plate in front of him. 

“You only know it’s almond milk, because you looked in the trash,” Nora refutes. 

“That’s not the point.”

“Morning, Sy. Nora, I think these are delicious. And better for the heart,” Mom chimes in.

“Let’s have a taste.” I grab my plate off the island and take a bite. “That’s actually not bad, Dad. I think it needs a touch more pepper, but I couldn’t tell the difference.” 

“Next you’ll be telling me it’s turkey sausage.” He takes a bite and grimaces.

“Actually, it’s a black bean and soy sausage,” Nora whispers to me. I muffle a laugh. Dad swallows it.

“It’s not terrible.” He takes another mouthful. We chat while we eat, then Nick enters with Leah. 

“Smells good.” Nick grabs my fork from hand. He stabs a biscuit, lifts it up whole, and takes a giant bite from it like a barbarian. “Lovely. Nora, you are the best cook.” He walks around to her and hugs her. 

“It’s vegan,” my dad states. Nick’s face goes blank. 

“Morning, Leah. You hungry?” Mom offers her a plate. 

“Yes, please.” Leah is about to eat when I grapple the fork out of her hand. 

“We’ll take it in the car. We gotta go.” I put some biscuits in a container much to Leah’s annoyance. 

“Fine. Bye, Mr. and Mrs. Spier.” Leah, Nick, and I head out to Nick’s car. We pile in and drive to the Dancing Goat. After we drive to Abby’s apartment. She slides into the passenger’s seat. 

“Three days left!! Onward Jeeves.” Nick shakes his head and puts the car into drive. “What is on the menu today?”

“Biscuits and gravy, courtesy of Chef Nora.” 

“They are vegan,” Nick warns her. 

“I’m so hungry I could it cardboard at this point.” Leah hands Abby the container. She ravages a biscuit. “Mmmm. Animal cruelty free food.”

“Barbaric.” Nick shakes his head. 

“Don’t listen to him Abbs,” Leah says, “He did the same thing earlier.”

“Yeah, and from my plate,” I add. 

“Patriarchic pig.” Abby flicks the condensation from her coffee cup at Nick. 

“Hey, I am driving here. Do not distract the driver!” Nick jokingly yells. Naturally we all start flicking the condensation at him. “Haha. You guys are a riot.” 

Nick starts turning down Bram’s street. We see him at the end of his driveway, standing there and looking cute. Nick slows to a stop. I open the door for him and he gets in next to me. He turns to give me a kiss. It’s different today. It’s more like the first time we kissed on the Ferris wheel. I lose myself. I fade into the sensual touch of his cupped hand on the side of my face and neck. The thumb strokes my skin tenderly while his lips part and let his warm breath fill me. 

“Uh, guys.” Leah’s voice snaps me back into reality. I open my eyes flutter open to see Bram staring back at me with his beautiful smile with that slight little gap between his front teeth. 

“Sorry everyone. Just had to do that.” Bram grabs my hand after sitting back. He straps his seat belt across him. He reaches for some food and his coffee. “Are these Nora’s vegan biscuits and gravy? Hmmm. That’s good.” 

“Nothing?” Abby looks at us. “You’re just going to kiss like that and not explain what is going on?”

“Don’t look at me. If I was your boyfriend, I would kiss you like that all the time. However, I’m not.” Bram takes another bite of breakfast. He is really funny once you get to know him. 

“Nick?” Abby looks at her boyfriend. 

“Abby?” He gives her a nervous sideway glance. “Look at the time, we got to get to school.” He puts the car in drive and steps on the gas hard. 

“We are not done with this sir.” Abby sits back sipping her iced coffee.

We arrive at school which seems more energetic than usual. The some of the seniors are having a color war by the front entrance. Vibrant clouds puff up all over as students run for cover inside. 

“Ready to make a made dash?” Leah gathers her bag. We get out of the car and prepare to run. 

“Hey!” We all turn to see eight fellow seniors with huge bags of colored powder packets. Their bodies dyed already. Before any of us could make a move, they are on us. I close my eyes and feel a packet hit my cheat. It explodes sending the dust all over. I then mistakenly inhale the colored powder and immediately cough it out. That was only the first of many packets from the bombardment. I open my eyes, unable to see Bram in front of me.

“Run!” Nick calls out from the right of me somewhere. I feel for the car to use it to guide my way through the technicolor cloud around me. That’s when I feel hands on my waist turning me around. They push me forward. Abby and I bump into one another. Me form a chain and lead ourselves out of the rainbow mess. We find Nick and Leah hand in hand running towards safety. Nick turns to reach for Abby. She reaches out but another group runs between us with ten more color assailants on their tail. Abby gets the brunt of the attack. 

“Simon!” I can just barely see Ethan with Taylor holding four golf umbrellas splattered with different colors. 

“This way.” I yank Bram and Abby behind me. The three of us duck behind their shields. I finally get a good look at both of Abby and Bram. They look like a child’s painting. Taylor and Ethan are just lightly dusted. Then we all start laughing. “Ethan, I could hug you right now.”

“Keep dreaming, Sy. It’s never going happen.” He smirks at me. He hands me an umbrella while Taylor gives one to Bram. 

“Let’s keep moving,” Taylor commands. We shuffle as best we can through the chaos all around us. 

“Wait! Hold up.” Abby reaches between the umbrellas. She magically pulls in Leah and Nick. They look worse than us. We tighten our formation and finally reach the wall of the school. 

“I think we’re pinned.” Nick says gleefully. 

“We got you surrounded,” one of our attacks shouts. 

“There’s too many of us to cover all completely,” Bram states. “I’m going to make a run for doors to the science hall.”

“You won’t make it. It’s too far,” Leah points out. 

“I have to try.” He looks me dead in the eyes. With every once of seriousness he says, “Simon, I love you. If I don’t make it however, I want you move on. Anyone but Ethan. He’s too good for you.” 

“Thank you,” Ethan chimes in.

“Thanks, Bram. I’m think I’ve already gone through all the stages of grief. I’m ready to get back out there.” I smile at him. “I think the guy that takes care of the lawn across the street is really into me.”

“Wow, I’m not even gone yet.” 

“Stop stalling and give up.” 

“Get ready.” Bram hands the umbrella off to Leah. He slips through an opening and dashes to the next entrance. Luckily, the goons take the bait and chase Bram. We bolt to the front entrance. We close our umbrellas and Taylor gathers them. Just as the group reaches the door, we hear something behind us. Everyone makes it in except me. I turn to see Lyle with a couple of friends.

“Sorry, Spier.” They pelt me but only after I am able to get into a seated position with my cast up to cover my eyes. When they are done Lyle walks over and helps me up. “You’re a good sport.”

“Is that so?” I grab a packet from his bag and slam it on his forehead. It causes a bigger explosion than I was expecting. Nick cracks the door for me and I slip in. We close the doors. A group of sophomores tries to sneak past but are caught and turn the attention away from us. We run up the stairs past an agitated Mr. Worth and the security team. “Thanks for the umbrellas.” 

“No problem. Let’s go clean up. See you guys.” Taylor and Ethan walk off to the bathrooms. 

“Ladies and Gentleman,” the announcements blare over the PA system with a screech. “If you need to clean up after today’s unauthorized prank, please head to the P.E. locker rooms where rental uniforms will be handed out at no charge. They must be returned clean by Friday. Showers will be available for those that wish to use them. First period will be cancelled. In an orderly fashion, please make your way to the gym.”

“Let’s go before we get the ones they don’t clean all the way.” Abby grabs Nicks hand.

“I actually have a change of clothes down in the dressing room. I’m gonna take a shower down there,” I say as I head in the opposite direction. “I’ll see you guys at lunch.” 

“See ya.” 

I walk against the flow to the auditorium. Everyone I see has some sort of color or colors on them. When I pass the last of the students, I see Bram standing by the corner of the hall with his athletic bag slung across his body. 

“Hey.” I walk up to him and rest my head on his shoulder. “I’m glad you made it.”

“Me too.” He wraps his arms around me. “Were you looking for me?”

“No, I have clothes in the dressing room. It won’t be as crowded down at those showers either.”

“I think I might join you then.”

“What are you suggesting?” 

“Anything could happen on the other end of the school.” We sprint down the hall to the auditorium.

We sneak into the theater quietly just in case. Next thing I know, we are in the dressing room and undressing each other. I turn on the shower to hot. He grabs some soap and lathers me up. I return the favor while I make out with him. After we’re clean-ish Bram takes control of me. He presses me up against the tile wall. His lips press against the back of my neck. He works his way down. When he is waist level, he flips me around. He takes me whole. I let out a moan a little louder than I was anticipating. He slides back and forth. I lose myself to him once again. 

We finish and start dressing. I can’t find my clean shirt I thought I had left with my pants. Bram throws his soccer jersey at me. 

“What’s this for?” I ask. That’s when I realize he is wearing my Elliot Smith t-shirt. “Is that my shirt?”

“Yes. I like how it smells like you.” He breathes in the collar of the shirt. I put on his jersey. 

“How do I look?” I check myself out in the mirror. Greenfeld printed across my shoulder blades. Simon Greenfeld. It was an interesting tone to it. I actually like the way I look in this. It’s a little big since Bram has broader shoulders, but it still fits.

“You look amazing.” He pulls me into him. Bram kisses me gently. “I want you to keep that.” 

“I’ll wear it all the time.”

“I’m sorry about yesterday.”

“I’m sorry, too.” I kiss him again. “Let’s skip second period and talk here.” We head out to the stage to sit underneath the ghost light. 

“How romantic.” We’re sitting on the lip of the stage holding hands.

“I got you something.” I pull a package of Halloween Oreos from by now brightly colored backpack. 

“How did you get these?” 

“Nora found these at the grocery store last night. They must have missed them.” I open them up. “They expire soon, so we might as well as finish them. We sit and devour a whole sleeve of the cookies before we decided it might be bad if we eat anymore.

“I need those.” He lays his head on my lap.

“I talked to my dad last night about what you said. About not being safe. He signed us up for a self-defense class. It starts next week.” 

“I’m glad to hear you are taking this seriously.” 

“I am. You were right that it could happen again. I need to be prepared for it.”

“Would you mind if I join you?” 

“You just want to check out my dad working out.” He rolls down to the theater floor.

“No, that’s just a bonus.” Bram helps me off the stage. We stroll up the aisle to head to class.

“I would like it if you did join us.” We exit into the hallway. “You have to promise me two things.”

“I will not check out Jack, too much.” 

“Gross but thank you. Secondly, I don’t want to hide in public anymore. That means holding hands and kissing.” 

“That I can do.” He lays one on me. “I could do that until the end of time."


	8. Graduation Day

Chapter 8  
Graduation Day!

It’s Graduation Day and we are all packed into the cafeteria waiting. It’s a record breaking 101° outside at 10:00 am with 100% humidity meaning the odors in this room right now are unbearable. No one is wearing their caps and gowns since the school’s AC is broken. I can’t imagine how hot the field house will be. The group sits at our regular lunch playing cards. 

“Hey Simon.” I turn around to see Cal. 

“Hey Cal. Wanna join us? Abby is cheating, but at least we aren’t playing for money.”

“I’m not cheating, Simon. You just have a terrible poker face.” She smiles at me. 

“I think you have a cute poker face, Sy,” Bram tells me. 

“Thank you.”

“It gives away everything you’re thinking,” he adds. 

“Hey Simon, could we talk for a second?” Cal asks. 

“Sure.” I get up and follow him to a less crowded corner. “What’s up?”

“I just wanted to say thank you. I recently came out to my parents as bisexual. I think they were pretty shocked at first but they are becoming more accepting I think. And it’s because of you, Bram, and Ethan. You guys were so brave and I just felt like I had to do this before I left for New York. So, thank you.”

“I’m glad we could help.” He gives me a quick hug.

“When you asked me if I was Blue, I really wanted to say yes.” 

“Why?” I ask.

“Why do you think?” His face turns red. “I had a crush on you. 

“Really?” 

“Yeah. I figured you liked me too with the way we kept looking at each other during rehearsal. But when the e-mails went up on Creeksecrets, I knew you really liked whoever Blue was.”

“I still do.” 

“Thank you for pointing out the obvious. I wish Bram and you the best of luck.” 

“Thank you, Cal. I’ll see you around this summer?” 

“I’m sure we’ll run into each other at some point.” 

“See ya.” I walk back to the table and sit next to Bram. 

“Should I be jealous?” he jokingly asks. 

“So jealous. He’s actually the heir to the Oreo family fortune and can supply me with all the Oreos I want.” 

“I don’t stand a chance against that. Well it was good while it lasted.” 

“Goof.” I plant a kiss on his cheek. 

“Attention everyone,” Ms. Albright shouts over the crowd. Most people just ignore her and continue talking. “Listen up, dumbasses! You are going to line up alphabetically. I hope I don’t have to help you since you are receiving your high school diplomas today. If you can’t, then maybe you don’t deserve it. Let’s go. Move it! We don’t have all day. I do actually have a life away from you all.” We stand up and start to move to our spots. Abby and I head towards the back while Leah, Nick, and Bram push through the crowds to the front. We find our spots and stand next to one another while everyone scrambles singing the alphabet to themselves. 

“You and your mom coming over for dinner today?” My dad was planning on a barbeque after the ceremony. The Eisner’s, the Burke’s, and the Greenfeld’s were all coming over. 

“As long as Nora’s cooking, yes.” 

“She will be.” We stand in line while everyone finishes finding their place.

“Listen up, everyone. That means you, Shauna. Don’t you roll your eyes. Just because you can’t stop talking for one damn second of your sad little life doesn’t mean you get to have an attitude.” Ms. Albright fans herself with a program. “Now, as some of you may have noticed, the AC is out. We are going to skip all the speeches and jump right into calling your names and getting the hell out of here. Leave your gowns here in the cafeteria, unless you feel like passing out. You can wear your caps. I’m here to remind you that you do not receive your diploma today. You will receive your diploma once you prove you can walk across the stage, shake hands, and sit back down without acting a fool. Got it? Alright. Start walking.”

Martin Addison leads the line on its way through the swampy halls. The whole time Abby is tapping on my shoulders excitedly. 

“I can’t believe it’s finally happening.” Her voice is at a pitch that would cause dogs pain. I let out a sigh of nerves. “Are you okay?” 

“It’s strange. The next time I know I’ll be here is when Nora graduates in four years. We’ll never pass through these halls again. It’s very surreal to think about.” 

“You think too much.” 

“Much too much.” 

We enter the field house to none other Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 in D. The field house is a steam room with hundreds of cameras flashing. I look around to find my family but give up when an overexcited dad takes a picture right in my face. The flash blinds me temporarily. Abby has to guide me until my eyesight returns. She grabs my shoulders and prevents me from crashing into someone’s grandma. 

“Watch it.” 

“Sorry ma’am.” I hear Abby chuckle behind me.

“Martin Addison,” Mr. Worth’s voice calls out over the PA. We aren’t even sitting. We are just walking right on stage and into the seats. My eyes start readjusting. 

“Leah Burke.” Abby and I cheer loudly. 

“Simon!” I hear Nora’s voice. I look to see them at the top of the risers. I wave to them. Mr. Worth is reading the names faster and faster.

“Nick Eisner.” We cheer again as we continue to make our way down the side aisle of the seats meant for us. The whole ceremony is moving pretty quickly. Not that I’m complaining since I’m sweating through my polo shirt. 

“Abraham Greenfeld.” 

“Yeah Bram,” I yell at the top of my lungs. I see him look out and smile sheepishly. “I love his smile.” 

“And I thought Nick and I were grossly in love.” 

“You are. Just not as gross as Bram and me.” 

“Garrett Laughlin.” The soccer team explodes with cheers. We are moving quicker now. Mr. Worth is rapid firing names off now. 

“Calvin Price.” We reach the end of the chairs. Only about 20 people in front of me now. I concentrate on walking. Nora bet me I would pull a Jennifer Lawrence and trip. I am not losing $20 to my sister. I make it to the stairs. Because the line is a little backed up I can only take one step at a time. Of course, at the top step I do nearly trip when the tip of my shoe catches the lip of the stage. I recover just in time for my name.

“Simon Spier.” The eruption of cheers from my family echoes through the field house. I feel myself blush. 

“Abigail Suso.” I quickly grab my diploma and turn to cheer Abby. She dances up to the principal to grab her diploma. I wait for her at the end of the stage as she shimmers over to me. We link arms and make our ways down the stairs. There is a photography snapping pics of each person. Nick, Leah, and Bram wait for us there. We squeeze in together in front of the camera.

“I’m only supposed to take solo shots.” The photography is some hipster dude wearing a scarf inside this sauna. 

“Just take the photo and we’ll get out of your hair,” Leah says. The guy snaps the picture and we walk back to our seats. I look up to see Ethan, the last student, accepting his diploma looking stylish as ever. We sit down just as Mr. Worth begins to speak again. 

“Whoooo. I’m sweating like a…sinner in church. Am I right?” No one replies. “Alright, let’s get out of here. By the power invested in me by the school board and the great state of Georgia, I now pronounce you graduated. Get out of here.” We all throw our caps in the air. I turn to Bram and wrap my arms around his neck. He kisses me before I can make my move. Not that I’m complaining. Everyone is running around to get out of the sweltering heat. We all wait in the center for our families. People come up to talk us then move on quickly. Ethan and Taylor come up to invite us to her party. Eventually, our parents meet up with us. We follow everyone out. 

“I know it’s hot, but could we get a picture with the sign?” Ms. Greenfeld asks.

“Mom.” Bram gives her an annoyed glance.

“Abraham, just one with your friends,” David Greenfeld says, “for your mother.”

“One quick one I promise,” she says. Nick, Leah, Abby, Bram, and myself hurry over to the Creekwood High School sign. The parents take about five photos each before we decide it is way too hot to be out here any longer. We meet back to our house. 

Nora starts to set her meal with all of our help. We place everything on the buffet in the dining room. She has created quite the spread. Nora has a little bit of everything that when you think about it shouldn’t work together. Of course, it all fits perfectly. Everyone grabs plates loaded with food. Then we sit in the back room to watch the ceremony. The recording is only twenty minutes long but Mr. Greenfeld is so excited about it. 

I like Bram’s parents a lot. Karen is just amazing. She is funny and energetic. Her love of showtunes is unmatched. David is quiet and smart. He is a lot like Bram. His wit shows once you get to know him. He has been around more since we started dating. He’s making a real effort to come visit. We have even made a couple of trips down to Savannah to see David as well. I think Bram is happy he has parents that are able to put aside their differences and work together for him. 

Once the recording ends, we head to the kitchen and dining room with Nora and Leah’s siblings to clean up. We try to make quick work of it, but we fail. Nick starts us off on a tangent of impressions of teachers. His imitation of Connor Ortiz, the ‘hip’ P.E. teacher, is pretty spot on. Bram and Abby reenact Coach Thompson’s disastrous attempt at asking Ms. Albright out which leaves Leah in stitches. She recovers and nails (pun intended) Debbie the lunch lady. Then I finish it with Mr. Worth talking about his Tinder date. Finally, we finish the dishes and head up to my room. We chill listening to music. The time flies and at 6:00 pm we have to get ready. Just as we are about to leave, a thunder storm rolls in hard. 

“What should we do?” Leah asks as we peer out the windows into the now dark skies. We were planning on walking so we could all drink, but that doesn’t appear to be possible. 

“I say we go for it.” Bram looks excited. The five of us head out into the pouring rain. We dash down the driveway to the sidewalk. Taylor leaves just over a mile away, but it doesn’t matter to us. We splash in every puddle along the way. I do my best Gene Kelly and swing long the light poles as we go. With one arm, it’s difficult to keep your balance. Bram catches me at one point after my hand slips. “You are a disaster, Simon.” 

“That’s why I have you.” I reach up to pull him into a kiss. The cool water is refreshing after today’s heat, but not as refreshing as Bram’s lips. He holds me tightly to him. We only break when the thunder roars directly over us. 

“Guys, this may have been a mistake.” I can barely hear Abby over the storm. That’s when the sirens go off. 

“Alright, we’re almost there. Let’s make a run for it,” Nick shouts. We follow him as he leads the way to Taylor’s. The storm is really picking up as we turn up her driveway. Nick barges in through the front door. We all pile in after him. Everyone is staring at us. We are dripping water everywhere. “Whatever you do, do not go out there.”


	9. Rough Day

Chapter 9  
Rough Day

I wake up in my bed with Bram’s arms draped over me. I stare out the window at the sun shining across the front lawn. I turn over to cuddle up closer to Bram, because I don’t feel like getting up yet. Not today. Also, Bram looks too adorable while he’s asleep. I love starting my mornings like this and we get start every one like this in a few months.

I stroke his jaw lightly with my finger. Then his eyes flutter open. 

“Hey handsome,” he says right before he kisses my forehead.

“Hey yourself. Sorry I woke you.” 

“It’s fine. We need to get going to the court house.” 

“Five more minutes, please.”

“Nope. Get up sleepy head.” He drags me up out of bed. We grab our clothes and head to the bathroom. My parents and sister are downstairs already. Bram and I quickly take a shower. Afterwards, we go down to the kitchen to find that Nora made us waffles. 

“Your sister is the best.” 

“She is pretty awesome.” I give her a side hug. “Thank you, sis.”

“I thought we all would need something special today.” She returns the embrace. We grab our plates and sit down with my folks. They keep it casual for me. Which is nice considering how this day will probably end up going. Today is the day I take the stand. The past few weeks they have been questioning the suspects, who have denied everything. It was hard to sit there listening to the six guys tell a lie about what happened. Despite the evidence, they are still contesting the charges. Now it’s my turn to tell my side of what happened. My dad has been prepping me for this since the beginning. I haven’t felt nervous about it until a few days ago. But the pressure is starting to hit harder. 

“Alright, we should get going,” my father tells us. We all go quietly to finish getting ready. I put on my nicest suit with Bram’s help. Even with the cast off, I’m still having a hard time doing certain things. My physical therapist is helping me gain mobility in arm, but it still can’t stretch out as far.

“How are you doing?” Bram runs his fingers through my hair. 

“I’m hanging in there,” I say shakenly. He pulls me close.

“Simon Spier, you are the bravest person I know.” 

“Thank you.” 

“I mean it.” He kisses me. I giggle for some reason. Then we are both giggling as he keeps trying to kiss me. 

“Time to go – oh – sorry.” My dad stands in the doorway averting his gaze.

“It’s fine, Dad. We were just…”

“I know what you were doing. It’s fine. It’s okay. Ready?” He’s getting teary eyed.

“Dad?”

“It is so hard to see you two kissing. I am completely okay with you two. I don’t have any issues with you being gay. But seeing it reminds me how much you’ve grown up and that you’ll be leaving in a few months.” He tries to wipe the water from his eyes. “Keep it together.” Bram and I circle him in a huge embrace. 

“It’s okay, Dad. It’s okay.” Now all three of us are crying. 

“What’s going on?” My mom walks down the hall to see us. She places a hand on Dad’s and mine shoulders. “Everything’s alright.” We stand there together for a while. 

“This is cute and all, but we need to go.” We look down the stairs to see Nora standing with the car keys. We break apart with a laugh before heading downstairs.

The car ride to the courthouse is solemn. We say very little to each other. I feel bad for Bram because I never let go of his hand even though mine is a sweating mess. When we pull into the parking lot, we see Karen Greenfeld waiting by her car. Her and Bram are the witnesses to seeing the assailants’ truck driving before the attack. Karen has been amazing with her support. She, along with Leah and Abby, have been my emotional Sherpas throughout the entire trial. They take me out after each day in court. Nick, Abby, and Leah even treated me to a night out in Atlanta. They took me to a gay bar called Webster’s where a guy named Peter kept hitting on me. Since Bram wasn’t with us, I made Nick pretend to be my boyfriend, much to his dismay. 

“How’s it going, Sy?” Karen rest a hand on my shoulder. 

“I’ll be better once today’s over.” 

“Well, we have a wonderful surprise after this is all over.” I try guessing what the surprise might be as we walk over to the courthouse. It keeps my mind off the impending terror that I feel coming. The group of us enter into the Decatur County Courthouse where the law firm’s PR person is taking questions from the media. My dad has us slip out of view. When we reach the court room doors, we meet up with Abby, Nick, and Leah. We exchange hugs and greetings.

“I’m gonna run to the bathroom before we head in.” I turn to make my way down the hall.

“Don’t fall in,” Nick calls after me. I try to throw up a middle finger but I keep forgetting my arm doesn’t like going that way still. 

I walk into the bathroom and do my business at the urinal. As I turn to go wash my hands, I come face to face with Henry Carlson. He is one of the accused attackers in my case. He’s a young-looking stockier guy with shaggy blonde hair and grey eyes. I remember his face from the attack. Mostly because he as a flatten noise like Owen Wilson. We eye each other for a moment. Henry is dressed in his oversized suit which makes him look even childish. However, this case has taken a toll on Henry. Bags under his eyes accompanied with the constant dead gaze shows it. 

“Excuse me,” I let out softly as I try to move past him. He holds out his arm to grab me. I knock it away using a block I’ve learned from the self-defense class. “Don’t touch me.” 

“I just want to talk.” His presence is making me sick. He steps closer. 

“You need to back away!” 

“Listen to me, please.”

“Do you know what you did to me? I could have died. I was in a coma for a week and had seizures because of you and your friends. You almost killed me. And the only thing I can ask is why me. What did I do to deserve this? I don’t even know who you are! You don’t even know me! Was it because I was flaunting my gayness too much? Was I asking for it by being a homosexual? Why did you do it? Why?” He doesn’t answer so I push past him to the sink. Henry is right behind me while I wash my hands and face. 

“I want to apologize for what happened.” I look up to meet his eyes staring back at me in the mirror. He looks distraught. I grab a paper towel to dry off. “I should never have done what I did. I’m sorry.”

“Why did you do it?” 

“I’m not a happy person.” Henry’s eyes swell with tears. 

“That doesn’t mean you can just attack people!”

“I know. But…I just felt cheated.”

“What do you mean?”

“I keep seeing you around. You’re always with your friends, or your family, or with your boyfriend. You always seem so happy. I don’t have plans for the future, I don’t have a job, I don’t have anyone special in my life. You have all of that. I guess I was jealous. It felt like you were living the life I want. It didn’t seem fair that you got what should have been mine. But I know that wasn’t right. It wasn’t your fault.” 

“No. I didn’t even know you, Henry.” I feel like I’m choking.

“I just knew you by sight. But every time I saw you, it ate away inside at me. Then my friends would say things about you being a fag,” I cringe when he says it, “and how gays were destroying the country. I fell for it. I felt like your happiness was taken from me.”

“Why did you attack me?” 

“I thought it would make me happy.” 

“Did it?”

“No, I took your happiness away. I didn’t hate you, I hated myself. I hated myself for what I did even more. I’m sorry, Simon. I really am. I’m not just saying that to get out of this. I’m going to plead guilty today.” His words hang there as I try to catch my breath. This has been over a month living through this hell over and over again. Watching the graining video of the attack over and over. Hearing the defendants deny the facts. Fearing how their lawyers would twist everything I would say into something against me. Not it was going to me over in a few minutes. “I’ll take whatever punishment is coming my way. I’ve been watching you this whole time. I thought I was miserable until I saw that I would make you relive the worst part of your life over again. I didn’t want that. You’ve suffered enough because of me.” Henry is sobbing now. I can’t help but reach out to comfort him. He cries into my shoulder and I pat his back. It’s a strange moment. I can’t help to forgive this large man spilling his heart out. 

“It’s okay,” I tell him, “I forgive you.” 

“Thank you,” he lets out in between sobs. We stand like that for what seems like ten minutes. Finally, he gains his composure. “I think we should get going.” 

“How about you clean up first?” I wet a paper towel for him. He takes it and wipes his face. “Thank you.”

“For what?” he asks, walking over to the sink to make sure he got everything. 

“For ending this. For not making me live through it again.” 

“You don’t have to thank me ever. I’m the asshole that got us into this mess.”

“You’re not an asshole. Assholes don’t feel remorse or compassion.” 

“You’re a good person Simon.” 

“I’ve made mistakes that hurt other people as well.” Maybe this is why I forgive him. I know what he is going through. 

“You’re still a better person than me.” 

“No. Henry, you’re about to do something braver than anything I’ll ever have to do. Don’t get down on yourself. This was just a mistake, but you can fix all of that. You’re a good person too.” 

“Thank you, Simon. I have to go meet with my lawyer. Good bye, Simon.” Henry holds out his hand for me.

“Good bye, Henry.” I take it and we shake. He walks out to the lobby. I stand in the middle of the bathroom alone taking in the moment that just happened. A feeling of relief washes over me. I begin laughing and cry simultaneously. I make my way to the sink again to freshen up. The cool water feels relaxing against my warm skin. 

“Sy, is everything okay?” Bram calls from the wall that obstructs the view through the door. “We saw Carlson leaving. Did he do something?”

“It’s fine. Everything is good.” I dry off quickly. Bram stands behind me. His arms wrap around my torso. 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yes. Henry is going to plead guilty.”

“What? Are you sure?”

“That’s what he wanted to tell me. He apologized and told me he plans on admitting to everything.” I turn to face Bram. His face is priceless. He is absolutely elated over this news. 

“I won’t have to go on the stand.” He draws me into a tight hug. We kiss. 

We join everyone in the lobby. My dad has stepped away to talk to the judge, the DA. and the defense team. Everyone files into the courtroom to wait for the judge to enter with the lawyers. After two and a half hours, they remaining parties file in from the chambers. The defense team looks miserable, but my father and the DA do not. The jury marches in looking rather confused. 

“All rise for the honorable Judge Lucinda Ellis,” the bailiff calls out. The judge takes her place. 

“Please take your seats. Will the both parties remain standing?” I feel my dad’s hand on my shoulder. “Mr. Carlson?” 

“Yes, your honor?” Henry stand tall with his chin held high. 

“Is it true you wrote this statement?” She holds up a few sheets of paper. 

“Yes, ma’am.” 

“Is everything in this statement true?” 

“Yes, ma’am.”

Then I just have to say, this is one the of best written statements I have read in a long while. It is not every day I read an admittance of guilt that is truly sincere as the one I have before me.”

“Thank you, your honor.” 

“The DA has made an offer. All six defendants will plead guilty to the felony aggravated assault in the first degree. The sentence will be as follows; all defendants will serve up to fifteen years in jail with the possibility for parole as well as $5,000.00 each in restitution to their victim. Does the defense accept the terms?”

“We do, your honor.”

With that, the case is closed. We have a reserve celebration as soon as Judge Ellis’ gravel strikes. The weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I excuse myself and walk up to Henry as he is being taken into custody. 

“Henry!” The guards stop for a moment. “Could we have a minute?” 

“You got two minutes.” 

“It won’t be long.” 

“Thank you again, Simon.” 

“Thank you, Henry. I wanted to let you know that you can e-mail me anytime if you need to talk to someone.” 

“Really?”

“Yeah. I’ll reach out to your lawyer to get my info to you.” 

“Thanks. I really appreciate that.”

“Take care. And don’t be too hard on yourself. You’re a good person.”

“Take care, Simon.” We shake hands one last time. I rejoin my family. 

“What was that about?” My mom places an arm around my shoulder. 

“Just helping out someone. Is anyone else starving?”


	10. End of the Line

Chapter 10  
End of the Line

“I can’t believe this is it.” Leah wraps her arms around my stomach from behind as we stand in my bedroom which I’ve stripped of all the essential décor. Even with most of it still up, the room still feels barren to me. I place my arms over Leah’s. “We’ve had some really good times in here.”

“Remember the time Nick tried to climb the trellis to the window and fell ‘cause it wasn’t attached yet?” We chuckle to ourselves as Nick walks in with Bram, Garrett, and Abby. 

“What is so funny?” he asks. Leah and I just look at him.

“I broke my ass!” we yell in unison. Nick’s cheeks flush as the others join us laughing. 

“Alright, forget I asked.” 

“It’s alright baby. Your ass looks good now.” Abby gives his bottom a slap. “Do you have everything?”

“Yes. Everything is packed into the car.” Leah release me so she can go sit by Garrett on my bed. He bumps her shoulder. She smiles at him returning the nudge. The two are really adorable together. Leah swears it’s nothing serious, but we can all tell how she feels. 

“Just waiting on my dad.” Bram pulls me into him. He leans us up against my desk. “I’m gonna miss this room.” 

“Me too. But we’ll make our room even better.” I plant a kiss on his lips. 

“But we’ve had so many good times here.” 

“How many could you have? You’ve only been together for 6 months.” Garrett leans back on my bed. 

“Let’s just say we’ve put some mileage on that bed,” I tell him just to see his reaction. Garrett slowly sits back up in mild disgust.

“This could be the last time we’re all hanging out here. This room was the best,” Nick says from the floor with Bieber on his lap. “Now we won’t see each other as much.” 

“You’re only gonna be an hour away from Simon and me,” Bram states. 

“And pay those tolls? No thank you.” Nick ruffles Bieber’s hair.

“Thanks, best friend,” I chime in. He smiles back at me. 

“I’m just glad I found a group as awesome as you guys.” Abby rest her head on Nick’s shoulder. 

“You’re awesome too,” Leah says.

“Thanks roomie!” Abby makes a heart with her hands for Leah. She returns it. I’m glad to see those two like this. I was always a little weary of their relationship. I wasn’t sure if they actually liked each other or just tolerating the other’s existence for the sake of the group. But there was nothing to fret about. They have been planning all of their New York adventures this entire summer. Abby and Leah have had their plans for their dorms since April when they found out they would be rooming together. “I’m gonna miss you guys.”

“Group hug!” Leah yells out. The six of us jump into the middle of the room. We all start to weep. Bram grabs the tissue box and everyone take some to clear tear-filled eyes. After a moment, we hear the honking of Bram’s dad and future step-mom rolling up from Savannah. 

“I guess we gotta get going,” I let out. We break apart from the massive hug to gather some composure before we start crying again with our parents. “Wait, let’s take a picture before we leave.” I grab my Polaroid camera. We huddle together at the edge of by bed. I take six pictures. Each of us takes one off the floor. We shake them for the photos to develop while we silently sing Outcast. Then I grab some fine point Sharpies out of my desk to pass out. They wait for a moment to see what I’m doing. I quickly sign the white part of the photo as ‘Baby Bear.’ There’s an audible ‘Ah’ from Nick while they sign theirs. We pass around the photos to sign. Nick as ‘Little Fro,’ Leah as ‘Grandmaster,’ Abby as ‘Sally Bowles,’ Bram as ‘Taillights,’ and Garrett as ‘White Pele.’ Eventually my photo gets back to me with all the signatures. 

“Is there we make a blood pack to return in 27 years to destroy the evil clown in the sewers?” Nick smirks at us. 

“I just want to say thank you all for the best year,” I tell everyone. 

“Stop, we can’t cry yet,” Abby grabs another tissue and wipes under her eyes. “Let’s head down.” 

Garrett heads out as the rest of us give my room one last. Abby follows Garrett out first, followed by Nick. Leah taps top of the doorway as she exits like she has always done for the past fourteen years. Bram places a hand on my shoulder. 

“You ready?” 

“Yeah. I’m ready,” I tell him. I pick up Bieber and we head out. 

All of our parents and siblings are out on the front lawn. The sun is just starting to peak through the trees in the early hours of the morning. I head to my family to talk to them. I pass Bieber off to Nora. He jumps from her arms and runs around like a goober. She takes this moment to hug me. I return it tenfold. 

“Will you call every week?” 

“I’ll try.” 

“I’m going to miss you, Sy.” 

“I’ll miss you too.” I kiss the top of her head. “But not as much as I’ll be missing your cooking.” She gives me a sucker punch to the gut. I head over to my parents. Dad is clearly a mess right now. I hold out my arms and we hug. 

“I can’t believe you’re going off to college. It’s gonna be okay.”

“I know Dad.” 

“No that was for me. You’ll be fine. Me on the other hand.” He breaks away. “Just remember; go to class, eat three meals a day, and call your mother often. She’s taking this way harder than me.” 

“Shut it, Jack.” My mom budges in and embraces me. “I love you, Sy. Please call when you get to Oklahoma City. And let us know if you need anything. We are just a phone call and a plane ride away.”

“Are you sure you don’t want us to come with?” My dad asks.

“I’m sure. We’ll be fine.” 

“Okay.” His eyes are watering. “You good. All good.” 

“Dad. We talked about this,” Nora gives him a look. 

-“I know.”

“Sy, time to go,” Bram calls over. We finish our good byes then head to the cars. My car faces one way while Garrett’s sits on the other side of the street facing the other side. Both have small U-Haul trailers attached. Abby, Bram, Garrett, Leah, Nick, and myself meet in the middle of the street between the two cars. We huddle together one last time. None of us speak. The six of us just stare at one another in relaxing silence. Finally, I nod and we break apart. Garrett, Leah, and Abby head to Garrett’s Jeep while Nick, Bram, and me pile into the Subaru. I put the key into the ignition, giving it a good turn. The radio blares to life with the Travelling Wilburys signing ‘End of the Line.’ We wave one more time as both cars pull away. I hold my hand out for Bram to hold. “You okay?”

“With you, I’m always good.” I lift his hand t

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for your kind and encouraging comments. I am ecstatic that you all enjoyed this story. This may be the end of this one, but the sequel is coming soon. I've already started working on it. The next one jumps about 8 years into the future. Please keep an eye out for it if you want to find out what happens. Thank you again. Love, Link.


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